Bloodlines
by Djinni of the Pen
Summary: Set 6 years after series. There's trouble in the Fire Nation Colonies. Murder has been done and the Avatar has been asked to investigate.
1. Yamamachi

**Chapter 1: Yamamachi**

Earth. Water. Fire. Air.

Their symbols were carved in fine detail across a stone no bigger than a silver coin. The stone itself was obsidian, taken from the volcanoes of the Fire Nation and refined in fire. It was laced with the finest silk of the Earth Kingdom dyed a deep blue hue. Together the entire piece formed a necklace. But even without its fine make and craftsmanship it would be no ordinary piece of jewellery. It was a betrothal necklace and it was made by the Avatar.

Aang held the necklace in his hand. The sunlight caught the stone and it shone with unblemished beauty. It looked so small and delicate in his callused palm. He wondered, then, why it felt so heavy, why it felt…he couldn't describe how it felt. Whatever it was, it was stopping him from asking her a very important question.

"One day," he said holding the stone to the light. "When I'm brave enough." Or maybe, when it felt right.

_"RWOAAR!"_

Aang looked up, pushing his troubled musings out of his mind. There was work to be done.

_"RWOAR!"_

"I see it, Appa, I see it." Aang tucked the necklace into his pocket and patted the Sky Bison's head. Aang believed that the view from a flying Sky Bison, no matter the location, was always impressive. The town of Yamamachi, however, was more than impressive. It was spectacular.

The moderately sized town sat at the base of the great mountain, Kawayama, perpetually swathed in wispy clouds. The mountain was dressed with dense forest that stretched down and into the township. Yamamachi was pattern of red tiled roofs and green foliage competing for the skyline. And beneath it all were the constant floodwaters that lapped against the wooden boardwalks.

As Aang steered Appa lowered to the town he could just make out the tunnel that cut through Kawayama. The passage provided the only access for kilometres to the towns on the other side. Despite the noon sun doing little to illuminate the tunnel's entrance it did extraordinary things to the town. As Appa dropped lower the hanging mist suddenly hit the right angle and it seemed the entire town lit up. Aang's eyes widened to see the myriad of rainbows that danced across the sky and along the water. Dew drops hanging from the eaves flashed brighter than diamonds.

Appa raced past the buildings, his speed causing the rain drops to spray out behind him. Aang looked down, catching his reflection running across the floodwater. A number of people traversed the boardwalks and they turned their heads up to watch in bewildered awe as the Sky Bison flew by. Aang, with the wind in his face and feeling the exhilaration of flight, speed – freedom – couldn't help but laugh. It had always seemed like the appropriate reaction to the simple joy of being alive.

Up ahead and approaching rapidly was Aang's destination, the Governor's offices. The red tiled manor had a large outer courtyard and Aang slowed Appa to land within it. He jumped off of the Sky Bison, landing lightly on his feet. With dismay he noticed that his flight through the water spray had soaked his clothes. He pulled the water out with bending but his clothes did not stay dry long. A blistering sun and air thick enough to eat soon had him sweating through his heavy monk robes.

_"Mrmph."_

Aang looked around just as Appa began to shake the water from his fur. His reflex was to wincebut the water was cool and refreshing, if only for a little while, from the sweltering humid heat.

"Thanks boy," Aang smiled and patted his animal friend. He looked over then and eyed the town.

Most of the buildings were on wooden stilts but a few of the more expensive establishments sat on raised stone foundations. A small number of people watched him, some whispering to young children; no doubt informing them who he was. Most townsfolk, however, went about their business, heads down, ducking them even lower if they happened to pass through a shower of rain. Aang noticed that the people wore a strange quasi hybrid of Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom fashions. He had seen the like in other Fire Nation colonies and knew that it stemmed from a desire to please the place of their birth and their new adopted home.

Aang had always felt a strange disturbance among Fire Nation colonists; a sense of not belonging. But Yamamachi felt different, it felt….wrong. It was enough to take the smile off his face. He could hear it now, or rather, not hear it. The hum of life that the Avatar could hear, feel, almost touch in every place in the world was subdued in Yamamachi to little more than a whisper. There was no hubbub of noise and talk in the town, just the sound of feet thudding on the wooden boardwalks and the lap and swirl of flood water. He shivered. Yamamachi felt like it was at death's door.

"Avatar?"

Aang turned and saw a thin man approaching from the manor. He was dressed in the same Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation cross but his clothes were statelier, refined. As he came closer Aang could see that the man's face appeared drained and was creased with lines of worry. Stopping in front of Aang he bowed, managing to pull his face into a weary smile.

"Welcome Avatar." The man intoned in a reedy voice. "I am Tonshi, acting governor of Yamamachi." Aang bowed in return.

"I trust you had a safe trip?" Tonshi asked. "Would you care for refreshments? I have the best rooms at your disposal."

"Appa will need food and rest," Aang responded. Tonshi nodded and motioned his hands for servants to take care of Appa. Aang continued, "But I would like to start my investigation immediately. If you would please, Governor Tonshi?"

Tonshi looked grave again but bowed once more and began to lead Aang towards the manor. The building sat imposingly on a large bedrock foundation. The courtyard had been paved with heavy, grey flagstones that were worn from years of shuffling feet and rains. A rain cloud passed over them and the steady down pour quickly soaked Aang to the bone. Tonshi hunched his shoulders but it seemed like an unconscious gesture. His eyes stared out at something distant and unseen.

The acting governor led Aang through the manor up to the top floor. The hallways carried the same odd quietness as they passed dull eyed servants who barely glanced up to see the Avatar. They seemed to go through the motions of their work, moving stiffly and barely speaking to one another. Even Tonshi seemed to have no desire to talk. Usually with colonists it was the opposite; they were always eager to show off the progress they were making. Aang began to feel like hunching his shoulders with the rest of them; the absence of Life was a pressing weight all around him.

Finally Tonshi stopped in front of a pair of heavy wooden doors. "This…was the Governor's study." Again Tonshi's eyes stared at something distant. He hesitated there in front of the door, lost in his dark thoughts. Aang though he might have to clear his throat when Tonshi's eyes suddenly snapped back into focus. He turned to Aang and his stare was so piercing, intense, almost pleading that Aang nearly took a step back.

"If you would please, Avatar?" Tonshi said as he unlocked the door. Still caught in the acting governor's gaze, Aang entered the room.

At first he wasn't sure what he meant to be looking at. The room itself was generously large for a study and richly furnished at that. The walls were lined with bookshelves, tapestries and fine art. A cold fireplace sat to one side. There was a large glass paned double door that led out to a balcony and an impressively decorated rug covering the stone floor.

And that was when Aang first noticed the problem with the room. The floor itself was not straight and level planed but seemed to slant upwards to the left. Aang turned his head following the slant. And then he saw it and wondered why he didn't notice it sooner. Even now, though, his eyes wanted to turn away from it. It was too familiar. The grey rock spire that burst out of the ground had shattered through what had been the Governor's desk. Aang's eyes continued up the spire to its jagged, bloody tip. The passing of time had done nothing to dampen the violent memory that flashed into Aang's head.

_Jet stumbled forward a step, shaking his head. his hair was slick with sweat and his arms trembled at his sides, making his sword-catchers glint in the pale green light._

Aang could hear Long Feng shout behind Jet, crying for the Avatar's blood.

"Do your duty, Jet!"

"He can't make you do this!" Aang shouted back at his friend. "You're a Freedom Fighter!"

The words seemed to shake something in Jet. He stood stock still with his head down, his body quivering as if something passed through him. And then he looked up at Aang with unglazed eyes. He was the old Jet with all the fire and fury he had once possessed. Aang saw desperation, determination and resolution all cross over his friend's face. He knew he would never forget that look.

With a snarl Jet turned and with all his might threw one of his sword-catchers at Long Feng. Unflinchingly, Long Feng pulled back and struck.

"We heard the noise and rushed up here to see what it is was." Tonshi's voice was quiet and distant.

Aang blinked, trying the shake the memory of Jet's death out of his mind. It was diffucult. The rock spire in front of him was twisted and sharp and unrelenting, driving home with uncompromising ferocity the image of the Governor's – and Jet's – life being brutally put to an end.

"By the time we arrived," Tonshi finished, "It was too late."

The acting governor fell silent and Aang looked away from the desk to face him. The same intense stare he wore before haunted his eyes.

"Was anything stolen?" Aang asked.

"No, Avatar. As you can see, whoever did this did not care for the things in this room."

"And no message was left? No group has come forward to claim responsibility?"

Tonshi shook his head. "Again, no, Avatar. But I believe it would seem clear where should begin to look."

"Yes," Aang replied. The implications alone, however, could mean disaster. And yet, it was there. "Yes, Earthbenders."

After examining the study a little further Aang was taken to the rooms set out for him. They seemed far too luxuriant for his Air Nomad tastes. He didn't bother with his evening meal; he didn't think he could stomach it. As he lay in bed the very idea of what had happened began to sink in.

Murder was abhorrent to begin with. But the murder of a Fire Nation colonist was significant, let alone that he was the governor. It had been done, quite plainly, by Earth Kingdom hands. Exactly who in the Kingdom remained to be seen. The damage, however, had already been done. Six years of tense negotiations had resulted only in the colonies being able to remain where they were. Ownership of the colonies was still an open debate. If word got out that a political official among the colonies was assassinated things could very well erupt. It would certainly spell an end to negotiations. At the very worst….war. After that thought sleep could only come fitfully.


	2. The Straw That Broke the Crococamel

**Chapter 2: The Straw That Broke the Crococamel's Back**

Aang woke bleary eyed and lead-headed to a timid knock on the door. He lay on his back for a moment, staring at nothing. Thoughts chased each other in his mind, scattering if he tried to reach for them. Dust motes floated through sun beams above his head, aimless, free. _To be like that_, he thought numbly. _What I wouldn't give..._

The knock sounded again, this time accompanied by a muted, unintelligible voice. Sighing, Aang pushed his sheets off and stood. His head swam for moment and he pressed a hand against his forehead. Responsibility would be a lot easier to handle if it wasn't so painful all the time.

There was a third knock. Aang sighed. "I'm coming."

With a quick gesture of his hand, Aang airbent the sliding door to his room open. The servant girl standing at the threshold jumped and gave a squawk of surprise. The tray of food she carried rattled in her hands.

"Sorry," Aang smiled as he came over to her. "Didn't mean to startle you." He reached for the tray. "Here, let me get this for you."

The girl gasped in shock and clutched the tray to her chest. "I could ne-never allow that, Avatar." She kept her eyes to the ground. "To let a guest such as you serve would shame me forever."

Aang smiled sheepishly and shrugged. He knew her type immediately, he had met them so many times before. "Won't you come in?"

The girl hesitated a moment before stepping in and placing the tray on a low table. She made to leave quickly.

"Wait a minute," Aang called.

The girl stopped in her tracks, eyes down, back stiff. "You require something else, Avatar?"

Aang sat down at the table. He knew her type but maybe he could coax some conversation out of her. "Some company would be nice." He gestured to the other side of the table. "Please, sit."

The girl stood where she was. "I can not, Avatar." Her voice was barely above a whisper.

"I won't tell," Aang encouraged.

She bowed low then. "I...cannot."

Aang sighed. He propped his head on his hand and began picking at his food. Awkward silence fell on the room. The girl was still bent double, motionless.

"Hey," Aang said. "Doesn't that hurt?"

There was no reply for a moment. "I live to serve, Avatar." She straightened. "Do you require anything else?"

"Other than your company?" Aang responded wryly.

The girl simply bowed again.

"I guess a name would be nice." Aang said. "You are allowed to tell me your name?"

"It is..." she hesitated. "I am Sai Lin," she said finally.

Aang grinned at his success. "It's nice to meet you, Sai Lin. I'm Aang."

There was a quirk to her lips. Aang's grin deepened at the crack in formality. "So," he asked casually. "It's a little hard to tell here. Are you from the Earth Kingdom or the Fire Nation?"

For a moment flat out anger appeared on her face but it was gone so quickly Aang thought he imagined it. Cold formality descended on Sai Lin's face. Her voice was frigidly stiff. "I am Yamamachi."

Aang stared at her warily. "Of course, I meant no offence-"

Sai Lin cut him off abruptly. "If you have no further need of me, Avatar?"

Aang felt hopelessly lost for words. _So much for some conversation._ He opened his mouth to dismiss her when there was the sound of an explosion, followed by another.

Sai Lin lost her cold mask and was quickly painted with surprise. "That was from..."

"Outside," Aang finished and he raced to the window. From the tops of the forest he could see smoke rise.

***

For a while Lieutenant Sho had been taking in the beauty of the forest around him. It rained a little too much for his taste and made wearing his armor a chore but the rest was quite magical. He never realised there could be so many shades of green. And the birds that he could see! They flew past in brilliant flashes of pinks, reds and blues. He could see the attraction of living out here.

Something red caught his eye and he stopped his ostrichorse. _It couldn't be._ He moved his animal closer to the side of the road. _Yes, it is._ Fire Lilies. But they were native to the Fire Nation. He wondered how they had gotten so far from home. _Well obviously it was the colonists, you imbecile. Just something they brought to remind them of home._ And Sho did feel a little homesick looking at them. He dismounted and plucked one of the flowers. Twirling the flower in his hand, the red petals flashing in the sunlight, he smiled. A little homesick, yes. But happy too.

Sho tucked the Fire Lily behind his sash and mounted up again. He admired it for a moment. It was a little non-regimented but it would only stay for a little while. Besides, today was a day to feel more than a little happy.

_"I'm putting my trust in you, Lieutenant. That means the Fire Nation is putting it's trust in you. Do your country proud."_

The Fire Lord's last words to him positively made his skin tingle. He, Sho Qin, of a minor and unimportant house, had the entire Fire Nation riding on his shoulders. And not only that, but to be working with the Avatar too. The honour was too much to contain. He allowed his well disciplined face to break into a grin.

The quiet laughter from the other people sharing the road broke his good mood. He tried for a hard-eyed stare at the Earth Kingdom troop.

"Something amusing, gentlemen?" Considering that they were five and he was one, Sho thought he came off rather intimidating.

There was more quiet laughter from all. Except of course from the one they called Sifu Khan. That one hadn't even acknowledged Sho. Which hurt his pride even more than the laughter.

"We like your flower, Lieutenant," one of them said with a smile. "It goes well with your shiny armour."

Sho twitched but said nothing.

"Yeah," another responded. "And it sure smells nice too. Better than us unwashed fellas. Am I right boys?"

There was a chorus of snickers. Sho felt his jaw creak.

"Nah, boys," a third said. "I hardly noticed the flower there. Sho always smells so pretty all the time."

Sho quivered with indignation. A dandy. They thought he was a fop.

"He's shaking!" One of them whispered loudly. "Wait for it..."

"Agni Kai!" Sho roared.

They erupted with laughter.

"I demand Agni Kai!"

"That's ten marks you owe me, Huan," a soldier said to the one riding next to him. The fellow was wheezing with laughter as he handed over the coins.

"I should never have bet," Huan managed to get out. "The lieutenant just makes too easy a target."

Sho couldn't stand it any longer. _An easy target, am I?_ Without another thought he firebent at the two soldiers. The flame was small but unexpected. Their ostrichorses reared and the two soldiers fell out of their stirrups, hitting the ground hard. The coins they were exchanging scattered across the road. The one named Huan fell awkward and there was an audible snap as his arm broke.

The laughter cut off abruptly.

The other three soldiers rushed to dismount and check on their companions. There was shouting and calls of orders. The ostrichorses were screaming and kicking, trying to shake off the fire that was no longer there. Above all the noise was Huan crying out in pain.

To Sho, the sound of his heartbeat seemed just as loud as all the shouting, if not louder. It pounded in his chest and thumped like a drum in his ears. His hands shook as the adrenalin drained rapidly from them.

"Huan..." his voice caught in his throat but the others didn't seem to hear him anyway. They moved quickly and efficiently, not even looking at him.

"Huan, I'm sorry." The apology sounded pathetic, even to his ears.

"Agni Kai?"

The words cut off the noise of the others. Sho's head jerked up and he stared straight at Sifu Khan. The man hadn't moved at all while his soldiers worked but now he dismounted. The kneeling soldiers watched in silence as he made his way towards Sho.

"You wish to..._fire duel_ with me?"

Sho eyed the man warily. He was short, dressed in a robe of green so dark it was almost black. His head was shaved and he wore thin, white moustaches that dangled down below his chin and a goatee that did the same. Sifu Khan had never looked at him before so it was only now that he noticed his eyes, green and shadowed by his brow as if peering out of a cave. They were not pleasant to look at.

"I..." Sho swallowed under Khan's unnerving gaze. "I didn't mean any-"

"You can't take back the words, Lieutenant, or the wounds," Khan interrupted. "Did you or did you not request Agni Kai?"

"Yes but-"

"Then I accept your challenge."

Sho stared at him. Even the soldiers seemed shocked. "Sir, I'll pay any recompense you wish..."

"You're recompense is to fight me, Lieutenant."

This was getting out of hand. The man seemed serious. Sho's eyes flicked quickly to the soldiers. Their faces were grim. One of them shook his head slightly. Sho almost laughed. He needed no warning not to fight Khan. The man had a reputation among the Fire Nation. Sho thought desperately for a way out.

"You can't Agni Kai with me," he said finally. "You...you can't firebend."

Khan smiled and, like most things about his face, it was not pleasant. "So this is the man the Fire Lord sent as a representative of his people." He eyed Sho contemptuously. "A weak, little boy ready to start fights but unable to finish them. The very image of every man who calls himself Fire Nation."

For a moment the flooding rage he felt made Sho unable to speak. "We Agni Kai," he finally managed.

Sho dismounted from his ostrichorse and assumed position, left arm outstretched, right arm bent and pulled back.

Khan sneered at him. "Lieutenant, I would have killed you anyway, if only to have you replaced with a lesser buffoon." He straightened, his shoulders pulled back, his feet wide, arms slightly raised to his side.

Sho's arms shook with fury. "That will be the last time you ever-"

His words were cut off abruptly when a pillar of stone launched him into the air.

Sho screamed for a moment, flying end over end until instinct kicked in. Turning, he firebent hard and fast at the ground, the momentum lurching out of him. He landed in a roll and stood quickly, arms ready, chest heaving.

The Earth Kingdom soldiers were far down the road. He could see them running after him. Khan, however, was nowhere to be seen. The forest around him gained an air of danger it never had before. _Maybe if I can lure him out..._

"That was an unfair move," Sho shouted.

The forest responded only with the buzz of insects and the sway of branches in the wind. Sho turned slowly in a circle, eyes searching.

"But then again," he called out. "You're an Earthbender. It's in your nature to be low."

There was a whistling noise and Sho turned in time to knock a flying rock away. The second landed in his chest. Sho fell backwards, unable to breathe. His breastplate had caved in, pushing against his chest. His fingers frantically grabbed at the shoulder straps. There was a rumble through the ground and he quickly rolled over. The ground beneath where he had been lying erupted.

His chest was burning now, screaming for air. His stupid fingers fumbled at the straps, panic crippling them. Another rumble sounded. Sho looked down between his legs and saw a jagged line of torn earth rushing down at him. As it descended he pulled at his straps, felt them snap and scrambled out the way. He stood, sucking in air, his chest piece falling away from him.

Khan stood casually across from him, eyes impassive. "You were saying something, Lieutenant."

Sho struggled to get control of himself. Khan was playing with him, didn't even think he was a threat. It was time for him to show what the Fire Nation infantry was best at; offence.

He ran towards the older man, jumped and roundhouse kicked, launching two fireballs larger than a man's head. Khan responded with one rock barricade, then another. Both exploded into shards of debris as the fireballs crashed into them. Sho didn't slow his assault. He landed from his jump and went straight into a low sweep with his legs, a wave of fire racing before him. It fizzled out as Khan softened the ground in front of him. Sho spun his leg around and pumped his fists, sending assault after assault at Khan. The man countered every hit, his movement hardly slowing at all.

Sho launched himself into the air, spinning his arms out, and a huge twisting funnel of fire charged at Khan. Khan hunched and encased himself in a hollow of stone. The fire funnel hit and Khan's cocoon of rock exploded. Thick layers of dust clung to the damp air, making that much harder to breathe. Khan was coughing and just regaining his balance when Sho burst through the debris, his fists trailing fire.

Khan Pulled and the dirt and rock from the air melded to his hands and forearms. Then he and Sho began to dance.

At least, that was how the Earth Kingdom soldiers would later tell it; a dance of rock and fire. They ducked and weaved around each other, Sho trying to press his advantage, Khan stubbornly holding his defence. They tore the forest apart around them, trees falling or bursting into flames, yet they hardly noticed. And when their arms would hit one another sparks would light the air.

Sho finally brought his arm down in a fury of flames as Khan brought his up with unflinching force. Both their blows landed and both were sent hurling backwards.

Sho lay on the ground for a moment, dazed, teeth clenched and drawing ragged breath. There was dirt in his mouth and sweat in his eyes. His muscles felt like water. Distantly he could hear the Earth Kingdom soldiers shouting something; encouragement for their master probably or something like it. But he wasn't going to lose. Not to Khan. Not to those soldiers. And he would lose to himself. He was representing the Fire Lord here. And that meant entire Fire Nation. Honour demanded him not to lose. And he wouldn't.

Slowly he pushed himself off the ground. It was painful, especially when seeing Khan already on his feet. But he could push through pain. His honour would see that he would. He drew a deep breath as he straightened, pulling the last reserves of chi remaining in him. He stretched his arms out behind him and fire bloomed in his palms, growing, building.

Khan watched him and sighed in seeming exasperation. "Give over, Lieutenant," he called. "You can't win. You can barely stand."

The fire in Sho's palms flared and he took an involuntary step forward.

Khan grimaced. "Very well, Lieutenant. Have it your way." He bent his arms to his side, fists closed and Pushed at the ground beneath. The earth erupted and Khan lurched forward at speed. The fire in Sho's palms exploded with released fury and he rocketed toward Khan. He shouted in battle cry as both men rushed towards an inevitable collision.

Sho was so focused on Khan that it took him a moment to realise he was suddenly underwater.

He watched in numb shock as those trees remaining around them burst, the liquid Pulled out of them. The sinuous flows wrapped around Khan and firmly smacked him a tree. The water coiled around the trunk and the aged Earthbender found himself thoroughly tied up.

Sho could do nothing but stare. Both of them had only moments ago been about to kill each other. And now they had just been incapacitated in a matter of seconds. _Who could have done this?_ His thoughts raced with panic. What _could have done this?_

And then he appeared, riding on the back of a giant six-legged animal. He was tall and young but with the eyes of an older man, a man who had seen many things. Those eyes were grim now as he turned to look at both Sho and Khan over his raised arms.

_It's him!_ Sho floundered in his watery prison, bubbles escaping from his mouth. _Oh Agni, it's actually_ him_!_

"Gentlemen," the Avatar said gravely. "I think you have some explaining to do."

Whether it was from excitement, exhaustion or from a lack of air, he would never know, but whatever it was, Sho promptly fainted.


	3. Necessary Introductions

**Chapter 3: Necessary Introductions  
**

Aang watched the Fire Nation soldier float aimlessly on his stomach. "Monkey Feathers."

He turned to the Earth Kingdom man he had pinned to a tree. "You." He gestured and the water holding the man froze. "Stay put." He simply passed a stern eye to the other soldiers. They quavered satisfactorily.

He turned back to the Fire Nation soldier and released the water bubble. The man collapsed in a heap. Aang half ran to him. _Spirits, maybe I overdid it_. Turning him over, Aang gestured his hand across the young man's chest and pulled the water form his lungs. The Fire Nation soldier immediately began coughing and sucking in air.

He was young; maybe only a few years older than Zuko. His face was narrow, angular and sharp. His lick, black hair was tied in a short tail.

"Hey, you alright?" Aang asked.

The man got some control over his cough. "I'm okay," he answered hoarsely. "Thank..." when he finally looked at Aang his words died off. Aang raised an eyebrow expectantly.

"Thank..." he swallowed audibly and his eyes were wide. "Thankyou for saving me, Avatar," he finished in an awed whisper.

Aang shrugged and stood. "It's no problem. It was kinda my fault anyway you almost drowned."

The soldier scrambled to his feet. Mud clung to his clothes and water dripped from his nose. His eyes, however, looked so rabid in intensity that Aang unconsciously took a step back. "No, no Avatar." His voice was vehement. "The fault is mine. To have put you out so shames me." He bowed quickly. "Please accept my apologies."

Aang stared at him. _Spirits, not another one._

A noise like braking glass sounded out behind them. Aang turned to see the Earth Kingdom man pick himself off the ground, brushing ice from his shoulders.

Aang frowned. "I thought I told you to stay put."

The man shrugged impassively. "It was melting anyway."

Suddenly the Fire Nation soldier rushed in front of Aang, arms raised in attack form.

"Woah! What are you doing?" Aang called.

"Be careful, Avatar," the soldier warned. "The man is dangerous."

Aang grabbed the soldier's hands and pushed them down. "I thought I made it clear that I don't want either of you fighting."

A look of consternation passed over the young man's face. He bowed again. "I have shamed myself again. Please forgive me."

Aang let out a sigh of frustration. The old Earthbender laughed. "I wouldn't take it personally, Avatar. Lieutenant Sho feels more comfortable when he's bending double."

Sho straightened fiercely. "How dare you insult me, Khan! You have offended my honour!"

"Your honour is offended almost on a half-hourly basis, Sho, that I thought you wouldn't notice," Khan replied dryly.

Sho took an angry step forward.

"Enough!" Aang shouted.

Both men looked at him with surprised faces. Aang took a deep breath, trying to regain his inner calm. After a moment he continued in a milder tone. "Let's start this again. Who are you and why are you here?"

When they both started at once Aang interrupted. "One at a time, please."

The two men stared at each other. "After you," Khan intoned casually.

Sho glared at him, as if trying to work out whether he was being insulted or not. He turned to Aang and bowed a formal Fire Nation salute before speaking:

"I am Lieutenant Sho Qin of the Qin family, in the Fire Lord's imperial army. I have been assigned by the Fire Lord to assist you in the investigation of the governor of Yamamachi's death. I represent the Fire Nation in his majesty's stead." He paused and whistled loudly with his fingers. An ostrichorse soon trotted before him. He took a minute to look through his saddlebags before pulling out a tied parchment. He handed it to Aang, bowing over it. "The Fire Lord sends his regards."

Aang took the parchment wordlessly. He was currently unimpressed with Zuko's choice of official in the investigation. He hoped his friend had a good explanation.

Aang felt his eyebrows rise as he read the letter's contents. Zuko's reasons were...surprising. Aang looked up at Sho. The lieutenant stood stiffly, staring beyond Aang. Aang reread the letter, trying to see if he had misread anything. He looked up at Sho again.

"Have you read this?" Aang asked.

Sho almost looked horrified. "No, Avatar. I would never do such a thing."

"No," Aang responded absently, reading the letter again. "Of course not."

Aang caught the curious look in Sho's eye. He smiled. Maybe the guy wasn't so stiff after all. "Would you like to know what it says?" Aang asked a little too innocently.

Sho's face worked with torn emotions. "I-"

"He speaks highly of you," Aang said simply.

Aang struggled not to laugh at the slow swell of pride crossing the Lieutenant's face. He looked like Aang had given him the world. Aang rolled the parchment again and tied it loosely. "I looked forward to working with you, Lieutenant." _For reasons you might not think_.

"Thank...thankyou Avatar," Sho stammered. When he moved to bow Aang raised his hand.

"You don't need to do that all the time," he instructed.

Sho stood stiff and serious again. "Yes sir."

Aang turned his attention to Khan, the Earthbender. "Your turn."

The Earth Kingdom man bowed his head slightly. "As you wish, Avatar. I am Khan."

Aang blinked when the man didn't continue. "Yeah, I figured that part. Is that all?"

Khan shrugged. "There isn't much to tell." He extended a hand out and one of the Earth Kingdom soldiers immediately supplied him with a parchment of his own. "I believe this will say all that needs to be said."

Aang accepted the parchment and began to read. It was from King Kuei. And despite what Khan had said earlier, there was _a lot _to tell. This letter made Zuko's look like nothing but gossip.

"You're assisting with the investigation too?" Aang asked, still reading.

Khan nodded. "The Earth King has requested that I represent our people in this matter."

Aang looked up and studied the man. "I suppose I should call you General Khan then?"

Khan's face was blank. "If you wish."

Aang held his look for a moment before returning to the letter. Kuei's letter was positively glowing. And a little terrifying. Khan was not just a general but a war hero, a man revered among the Earth Kingdom. Kuei also wrote a little of the General's past record. It was...colourful.

"Well General," Aang said rolling up the parchment. "This should be nothing but interesting."

Khan only nodded politely.

"Which bring me to my next problem," Aang said briskly. "If both of you would care to explain why the officials in a high profile investigation decided it would be a good idea to kill each other?"

"The man insulted my honour!" Sho jumped in. "He insulted all Fire Nation men!"

"If all Fire Nation men were not so eager to jump down the throat of every little gibe you wouldn't be so hard to insult," Khan responded.

"Your men lack discipline!" Sho retorted.

"And you lack a sense of humour," Khan threw back levelly.

"Stop!" Aang interrupted. "Spirits! You're acting like children. Now...can you _calmly_ tell me what happened?"

Sho took a breath but Khan spoke first. "It's simple Avatar. My men were having some harmless fun at the Lieutenant's expense. He retaliated by declaring Agni Kai and injuring one of my men."

"I-!" Sho shouted.

"Is that not what happened, Lieutenant?" Khan talked over him.

Sho's eyes glared balefully before dropping. "Yes," he muttered. His eyes shot up again. "But I wasn't-!"

"If I may continue, Avatar?" Khan interrupted again.

Aang paused before nodding. Khan inclined his head while Sho stood fuming.

"Thankyou. As I said the Lieutenant invoked Agni Kai. I accepted. The result is what you saw."

"Why would you Agni Kai with him?" Aang asked incredulously. "For revenge on your injured soldier?"

"Hardly, Avatar," Khan scoffed. "If Huan was stupid enough to let his guard down the he deserved the broken arm."

"Then why?" Aang asked. Sho looked curious too.

Khan shrugged. "To test him."

Aang stared. "_What?_"

"What?" Sho shouted atop of him. "You said you wanted to kill me!"

Khan smiled unpleasantly. "Please, Lieutenant. I never meant any harm."

"No _harm?_" Sho's voice was unbelieving.

"None permanent anyway," Khan smiled. He looked at Aang. "The Lieutenant told my men that he was here to help with the investigation. I wanted to know what kind of man the Fire Lord sent. You took must also know, Avatar, that the best way to way to know a man is on the battlefield."

"I don't know," Aang replied flatly. "I usually go with the 'hello, how are you?' approach."

"Yes," Khan's smile did not reach his eyes. "I noticed."

"And what did you find?" Aang asked tersely.

Khan's face went bland again. "He acts like most Fire Nation men; aggressive to a fault. But he has an interesting stubborn streak within him." Khan shrugged casually. "He passes."

"So glad you approve." Aang could almost hear Sho's teeth grind as he spoke.

"I trust that there will be no more 'testing' in the future, General?" Aang cut in.

Khan inclined his head slightly. "As you wish, Avatar."

Aang studied both men; a hot-headed and overly sensitive soldier and an arrogant and disrespectful old general. _Not exactly what I need in an investigation that's ready to go off like blasting jelly._ Yet Zuko and Kuei trusted both enough to send them to him. He had to believe they made the right decision.

"First things first," Aang eyed them sternly. "You two will clean up this place. I want the road in working order before noon. Once that's done meet me at the Governor's mansion." Both men bowed, Sho bending double, Khan as if to an equal.

Aang airbent himself atop Appa. "I'll see you both later today." He paused before leaving. "Try not to kill each other."

* * *

Khan watched the sky bison fly off. He smiled to himself. Avatar Aang was exactly as he suspected.

"Are you going to help or what?"

Khan turned to the Lieutenant and let his smile drop. He stared at the Fire Nation man a moment. The soldier stared back. Then, without a word, Khan earthbent, letting a small current of rock push away broken branches and trees from the road. Lieutenant Sho huffed and turned away. He began to Pull fire from out of the trees.

Maybe the Lieutenant through the work shameful, maybe he didn't. Unlikely he did, considering the man's almost worshipful adoration of the Avatar. Khan himself couldn't care less. He had done menial labour in his time. Compared to what he had endured, this task didn't even come close to punishment. It was merely exercise. He Pushed more debris away.

"So I pass, do I?" Lieutenant Sho's tongue was bitter.

"Yes, Lieutenant," Khan replied absently. Those long years in the camps had taught him much. On such was not to show a reaction to pain. The skill was second nature now, so much so that he almost couldn't feel the burns the lieutenant had given him. Almost. "With flying colours."


	4. Eyes

**Chapter 3: Eyes**

Lieutenant Sho clamped his jaw shut to avoid yawning and tried not to let his fatigue show. He blinked a few times to clear his blurring eyes but the poorly lit room only added to his sleepiness. He, the Avatar and Khan had been in the former governor's study since late afternoon. It was now well into the night. They had stopped twice to eat but the Avatar was eager to continue his investigation. They would likely all still be up when midnight struck.

That was fine, Sho supposed. Only he didn't know how he benefited their little group at the moment. When they'd first entered the study Khan had headed straight for the jutting rock spire, its tip still clotted in blood. He had spent the entire time staring at it, first from one angle, then from another. Occasionally he touched the stone or examined the cracks along the ground. Sho saw him actually lick it once. Now, though, the general just stood there behind the shattered desk, his deep set eyes boring into the stone.

The Avatar also appeared hard at work. He had firstly recruited Sho to help him search the room. Sho had taken down every book and scroll from the shelves, cataloguing each. He stared at his ink stained fingers. That had been tedious work but it was still work. It shamed him to think that he was of no help to the Avatar at the moment.

The Avatar had found a cache of documents in a hidden cabinet. He had promptly sat down of the floor to read them, leaving Sho to finish examining the rest of the room. There had been nothing else really of interest: some paintings of the governor's family and a fine one of the governor with the Fire Lord, a pair of antique spears, a small set of ornamental measuring scales, tapestries depicting great Fire Nation and, to his shock, _Earth Kingdom_ victories and a marble bust of the governor's own head.

Sho looked up in the flickering candle light at the bust. There was a lot in Governor Faizin's study to point that he was a Fire Nation man. But that bust was Earth Kingdom art. And those Earth Kingdom tapestries; Sho had know idea what to make of them. It seemed almost as if Governor Faizin was of two nations. Sho shook his head. The thought that anyone would..._mix_ themselves in such a way was repulsive.

After he had finished cataloguing the room Sho had sat opposite the Avatar and had taken one of the papers that he had been reading. It had been a tax document. Sho had groaned; numbers hurt his eyes. The Avatar had glanced up from his reading and cocked an eyebrow. Sho had wiped his frown in a hurry but the Avatar had just smiled.

"After six years reading this kind of stuff you learn to control your gag reflex."

Sho had nodded solemnly. "I will persevere then, Avatar."

For some reason the Avatar's smile slipped a little then. Then he had simply shaken his head and returned to reading.

Unfortunately Sho could not persevere. It wasn't just the numbers, but by Agni they were bad enough. And it wasn't the uncomfortable slope of the floor. It was more like the entire room itself. It felt oppressively quiet, what with Khan staring at a rock and the Avatar concentrating on his papers. He had needed to get out and into someplace with people and noise.

"If you would excuse me, Avatar?" Sho had asked, standing.

The Avatar had absently waved him off, having become completely absorbed in his documents. Khan might as well have been a statue for all the reaction he gave off. Sho had exited without disturbing either.

Out in the streets of Yamamachi, however, things were not much better. He had always been under the impression that the colonies were exciting places; frontier townships with exotic lifestyles and strange people. The people might have been strange but Yamamachi was anything but exciting.

People had trudged past him, heads down against the passing rain and hot sun. There had been quiet barter and hawking in the market, but nothing above conversational tones. People should have been shouting, crying their wares or making a bargain. And again there had been that odd mixing of nations; red and green clashing in clothing, Fire Nation accents on the tongues of Earth Kingdom men and Earth Kingdom children called by Fire Nation names. Even the food couldn't decide whether it was one or the other.

"Fire flakes?" Sho had asked a wrinkled old woman behind the counter.

The street vendor spat through the gap in her teeth. "Eyes got fyre nuts ownly."

Sho had to repress a sigh. "I'll take them."

Sho had cautiously tried a nut when he left the vendor. It had been hot but salty and not at all like fire flakes. He had held the bag in one hand after that and ate no more. Later he had given them to the Avatar who ate them without complaint.

It wouldn't have been so bad if not for the staring. It seemed like every second person had been looking his direction. He had wondered if it was his uniform. He had managed to clean his face but his clothes were still stained with mud and torn in a few places. But those looks he had been getting were not pleasant; some had seemed outright hostile. Before long he had decided it would be a good idea to leave.

He had been on his way back to the mansion, avoiding stares and rain alike, when he had heard a deep animal growl. Sho had started at the sound. He had glanced around but all he had seen were angry looks. It came again. It had sounded like it was coming from the stables.

Sho had snuck up to the table area and had hidden behind a hay bale. Whatever had been growling, it had sounded awfully big and Sho had no intention of being caught by it.

Now, sitting in the dark study, Sho plucked a straw from his clothes and remembered the scene that had met him...

* * *

Someone else was there in the stable. He could hear them talking between the animal growls. Steeling his nerves, Sho peeked over the hay bale. Between the stalls, hitching gear and ostrichorse tack, Sho made out a large mound of white fur. The animal growled menacingly again and the ostrichorses' jittered in their stalls. That person was talking once more but Sho couldn't make out any words. He left his hay bale and edged around a corner to see...

...Appa. And the sky bison was not happy. The huge animal bared its teeth and growled at the person standing before him; a maidservant by the look of her. She held a hand protectively in front of her and the other reached out to touch Appa. Appa glared at the hand and backed away, his huge tail pushing against the back of his extra large stall.

"I won't hurt you," the girl said. "Please..."

A deep-throated growl sounded from Appa and he lunged forward in a mock charge. The girl jerked her hand away, took a step back and tripped. She fell to the ground, buckets and pitches collapsing around her feet.

Appa snorted in satisfaction. The girl stared wide-eyed at the animal and made to stand. It was then that she finally noticed Sho. Her shocked look quickly dissolved into indignation.

"You! Have you been here the whole time?"

Sho stepped out from behind the stall. "For a minute or so," he said. He stretched a hand out to help her up.

The maidservant shook off his hand and pushed herself up. She brushed her hands along her dress and fussed with her hair.

"I don't think he likes you," Sho said.

The girl turned to him an inquiring look. Sho pointed his head at the sky bison. "Appa."

The maidservant turned her head away. "He just doesn't know me yet. Shouldn't you be with the Avatar?"

Sho eyed her suspiciously. "How did you know I was part of the investigation team?"

The girl smiled and not in a friendly manner. "Who doesn't know? You and the Earth Kingdom general are the talk of the town. Everyone saw what you did on the Fenshi road."

The road. So that was the reason for the dirty looks in town. Sho aimed to change the subject. "The Avatar has allowed me to see the town."

"Oh?" the maidservant said. "And have you found us to your liking?"

Sho could hear the bait in the question but chose not to rise to it. "Yamamachi is a beautiful place."

"Yes," the girl said quietly, her head bowed in thought. She then raised cold eyes to the lieutenant. "It's a shame it won't continue to be so."

Sho looked at her, confused. "The road was the only place I damaged."

"The _road_?" The girl's voice raised an octave. "I'm not talking about the road."

Sho felt more confused. "You don't like me."

The maidservant gave a small laugh. "What gave you that impression?"

"Nobody in this town like me," Sho said levelly.

The girl looked at him for a moment. "No."

"Why?" Sho asked.

The girl's look was incredulous. "Because you're Fire Nation." She spoke as if explaining something obvious.

"That doesn't make sense," Sho replied. "You're Fire Nation too."

"I am Yamamachi," the girl said. Colour rose in her cheeks and her voice was heated. "I was born one, I will die one. I will never be Fire Nation!"

"Everyone here is Fire Nation!" Sho retaliated. "You may pretend different with your Earth Kingdom dress-"

"Earth Kingdom!" the girl shouted. "They're just as bad as you Fire Nation."

Sho felt his temper drop in shock. "I don't...I don't understand."

"That's right, you understand nothing. Nothing about us or anyone else in the colonies. You only care for yourselves and your stupid pride!" The girl's voice caught in emotion and she stopped herself.

Sho could only stare. This...this had never happened to him before. He had heard of people rejecting families, army service, even the Fire Lord but never their _country_ before. He looked at the girl. He could hear her begin to sob.

"What's your name?" he asked finally.

"You want to report me?" she asked. Her hand brushed at her eyes.

"Just tell me," Sho said.

"Sai Lin," she said quietly.

"Look at me, Sai Lin."

Sai Lin raised her head, eyes red, cheeks streaked with tears. There was sullen anger in those eyes. Sho wanted to tell her that she was wrong. That he did understand her, and if he couldn't understand, then he would do everything in his power to do so. Because he was Fire Nation and it was his duty to protect his people, to help them. Because _she _was Fire Nation, no matter what she said.

In the end all he said was, "Be careful of Appa." He left the stable feeling shamed and useless.

"Sir?"

Sho turned back to the girl. "It's Lieutenant Sho."

"Lieutenant?" Sai Lin called. Her eyes still were heated. "I hope you find Governor Faizin's killer."

Sho nodded. After that he had made his way back to the study.

The Avatar and Khan had not moved. The Avatar raised his head from the paper he was reading. "Enjoy the sights?"

Sho sat opposite the Avatar again and shrugged, trying not to meet his eye. "Fine, I guess." He remembered the looks he had gotten in town. Sai Lin's eyes. "Not like home, though."

* * *

And that was where he had stayed for the rest of the day. Eventually the Avatar had read through all the papers once, twice, three times. Now he sat in a meditative position, unmoving. Sho felt his eyes get heavy.

"Sho, go to bed."

The Avatar's voice made Sho jump. "I'm fine Avatar." He straightened to prove it. The Avatar, eyes closed, smiled.

They sat silent for a moment then Sho finally spoke up. "Do you mind if I ask you a question, Avatar?"

The Avatar opened his eyes. "What's on your mind, Lieutenant?"

Sho picked at his clothing and eyed former governor's image, the dead man's face chiselled in stone.

"Have you..." he paused and cleared his throat. In truth he was stalling for time. He didn't know how to continue. "Have you noticed anything strange about this town?"

The Avatar raised an eyebrow. "'Strange' how?"

Sho cleared his throat again loudly. "The people here, they ah...they don't...they don't like me." He finished in a rush, his cheeks heating with embarrassment.

The Avatar stared. "'Don't like you?'"

"Not like that, Avatar!" Sho explained hurriedly. "It's just that...they look at me like I'm their enemy."

The Avatar's face was grave. "And it shouldn't be like that."

"No, it shouldn't" Sho continued. "I'm a member of the Imperial Army. I'm here to help them. But they seem to think the worst of me and I don't know why."

The Avatar stared at him for a moment then responded, smiling a little. "I wouldn't take it personally, Sho. They treat the General just the same."

Sho swung his head to Khan. The man was a statue.

"You missed it," the Avatar continued, his smile growing wider. "One of the servants deliberately spilt Khan's tea all over him." He gave a small laugh, like it was a joke.

Sho didn't find it funny. More like disturbing. "She did say she hated the Earth Kingdom as well."

"'She'?"

Sho shook his head. "Just someone I met today."

They were silent for a time; the only sound was that of rain outside, another passing squall.

"I just wish I knew what I did to offend," Sho said finally.

After a moment the Avatar sighed. "I'm sorry, Sho. I shouldn't make fun of the situation. Tomorrow I promise to talk with the acting governor. Maybe he can tell us what's going on with this town. With all the towns."

"All of them, Avatar?"

The Avatar nodded, his face creased with concern. "This trend of mixing Fire Nation with Earth Kingdom is happening in the other colonies. I think it's time I paid a closer look at it."

The thought that the mixing was spreading made Sho pale inside.

The Avatar stood. "Don't dwell on it too much, Sho. Past time for bed anyway. Shall I leave the lamps on for you, General?"

Khan did not reply.

"General?" the Avatar called. Still no reply. "Khan!"

The old Earthbender stirred at the sound of his name. He blinked and stared around the room as if remembering where he was. "What?" his voice was thick.

"Shall I leave the lamps on, General?" The Avatar asked again. He was smiling a little.

"What? No." Khan sounded distracted. "I'm going to bed."

"Great idea," the Avatar replied with a grin.

"Did you find anything interesting, Khan?" Sho asked, trying to be polite.

Khan turned thoughtful eyes toward Sho. "Something, yes. Tomorrow I would like to examine the body."

The Avatar nodded slowly. "I suppose that's necessary."

"Squeamish Avatar?" Khan's smile was vicious.

Sho jumped up off the ground but the Avatar replied, "Yes actually."

"Then allow the Lieutenant and myself to examine the body," Khan said. "Save your weak stomach."

The Avatar actually smiled at the insult. "That's very thoughtful of you General. I want to see Tonshi about these documents anyway."

Khan's face blanked and Sho grinned to see him shamed.

"Good night, both of you," the Avatar said as he left the room.

Sho and Khan both murmured goodbyes. When the Avatar had left Khan turned hard eyes to Sho. Sho met the stare. Khan suddenly smiled.

"Just you and me tomorrow, Lieutenant."

"I look forward to it, General," Sho replied.

Khan only nodded his head. Sho called him as he left.

"Khan?"

The old general turned back.

"Did you know that they hate us here?" Sho asked.

Khan's smile was faint. "Of course they do."

Sho stared at him, incredulous.

Khan sighed. "I wouldn't expect you to understand, Lieutenant."

"Then explain it to me," Sho replied heatedly.

Khan looked at him. "No." He turned and left.

Sho stood silently in the study. He looked at the hybrid of Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation design that saturated the room. Never had he felt as alone as he did in this town. A town full of his own people. He let his heart ache for a moment before taking in a deep breath and pushing it away. He was Fire Nation and they were too, even if they didn't believe it. And he had a duty to them. With a straight back he blew out the guttering candles.


	5. Aang Investigates

**Chapter 5: Aang Investigates**

Aang knew it was a nightmare the moment Jet appeared in front of him. The old Freedom Fighter dripped in water, sword catchers trembling at his sides.

"Times are changing, Aang." Water poured from his mouth.

Aang reached a hand out to him. "Jet?"

"Are you ready?"

And then it was no longer water pouring from Jet's mouth but blood. Aang saw the spire that had killed his friend crash through him all over again. And now it was no longer Jet's face but Faizin's. he seemed oblivious to the hole in his chest, the blood ruining his stately Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom dress.

"Are you ready?" he asked.

Faizin keeled over and began to fall. Aang screamed as the body toppled on him, blood soaking his skin, smothering him.

He woke with a shout.

And a need to pee.

* * *

He didn't sleep again that night. Instead he sat by the window letting the moon light up the betrothal necklace in his hand. The light picked out the features on the stone and caught the shimmer along the silk thread. He couldn't stop staring at it and couldn't stop thinking that it was all wrong. Still...

"I wish you were here, Katara."

* * *

"What was Faizin like?" Aang asked.

"Governor Faizin was a good man," Tonshi replied.

They sat opposite each other at a low table, legs crossed on the floor. Aang held his cup of tea in one hand and the hidden papers he had found yesterday in the other. As Tonshi accepted his tea from one of the many servant standing by he glanced quickly at the papers. Aang smiled inwardly. Tonshi would know about them in due time.

"No enemies?" he questioned.

"One does not become governor without stepping on a few people, Avatar."

"Anyone willing enough to kill him?"

Tonshi grimaced. "Plenty of them, Avatar. Faizin was not well liked by either Fire Nation or Earth Kingdom officials."

Aang nodded in thought, sipping his tea. "And the people? What did they think of him?"

"Surely, Avatar, you've noticed the grieving our town is going through?" Tonshi's face pained. "Faizin was loved here, Avatar. We all believed he would be the one to bring some finality to the land ownership talks."

"I see."

"He was a champion of our people," Tonshi continued.

"A Yamamachi man," Aang said.

Tonshi opened his mouth then hesitated as he caught Aang's meaning. "Yes," he said cautiously. "A Yamamachi man."

Aang held the acting governor's gaze. Tonshi swallowed audibly but didn't avert his eyes.

"My associate from the Fire Nation, Lieutenant Qin, is confused by what he's seen here," Aang said finally. "And I have to agree with him."

Aang eyed the room quickly. It seemed everything, from the small cups to the tapestries on the wall, had been touched by two countries.

"You all seem to be adopting styles and traditions from the Fire Nation and the Earth Kingdom," Aang continued, "and yet you treat both nations with contempt."

"Not the nations, Avatar," Tonshi replied, his tone hard. "The officials are the only ones we no longer respect. If you knew what they have done to us you would understand"

"Lieutenant Qin and General Khan are here to help the investigation, Governor."

"Not everyone will see it as that, Avatar."

"Then help them see it, Governor," Aang replied. "Your people are as much a part of the Fire Nation or the Earth Kingdom as they are." Some of the servants stirred at that comment but Aang pressed on. "The colonies have mixed so much that you might as well be blood relations to both countries."

Tonshi frowned. "Does our culture upset you, Avatar?"

"Honestly," Aang replied, "I'm not sure what to think. _I_ understand you want your own identity but you can't expect everyone else to. Many from both kingdoms still view you as their own people." He sighed. "What concerns me most is balance. I don't know if the world can cope with something as momentous as the rise of new nation. I just got the world back together, I'd hate to see something like this break it again."

A cup shattered on the ground. Aang stared and saw one of the servants had dropped it. Sai Lin.

"Forgive me, Avatar," she murmured.

Tonshi waved her off and Sai Lin began to clean up.

"I think you overreact, Avatar," Tonshi said. "Our actions are peaceful. We've done nothing to show rebellion against our host nations."

"And I'd have to disagree with you, Governor," Aang replied levelly. "My two associates yesterday weren't exactly treated by your people in a friendly manner."

"Again, Avatar, I'd remind you that our people do not like officials from either nation. Many of them feel Faizin was murdered because of his advocacy of the colonies."

"Is that what you think, Governor?" Aang asked.

Tonshi hesitated for a moment. "Yes, yes I do."

It was a likely scenario. A man with a lot of influence speaking out for the colonies would be a threat to both contending nations. _But_, Aang thought_, there's something else to consider_.

"Governor, I'd like you to have a look at this." Aang passed over the papers to Tonshi.

The acting governor took a moment to read through them. Aang watched as his expression changed from confusion to shock and then to something a little unexpected; fear. _Interesting_.

"I've never seen these papers before, Avatar." Tonshi held the papers gingerly in his hands, like they were poison.

"You see why I'm curious, don't you, Governor?" Aang asked casually. The papers, when deciphered from the accounting jargon, were a record of shipments. Or, better put, a record of _off the record_ shipments.

"Truly Avatar, I had no knowledge of this." Tonshi sweated a little. Aang gave him the benefit of the doubt and attributed it to the heat.

"Are you sure, Governor?" he asked. "From these records it seems like Faizin was..._importing_ for at least two years."

Tonshi motioned for one the servants to refill his cup. Aang sipped his own and allowed the acting governor to stall for time. He glanced over at the servants provided him, including Sai Lin. They showed a range of subdued expressions, mostly disbelief. Some flicked quick looks at Aang. Sai Lin avoided his gaze altogether.

He sighed and set his cup down. "Governor Tonshi, listen. You asked me to come here and find out who killed Governor Faizin. Help me do that."

"I have told you where to look, Avatar." Tonshi's face was troubled, despite his resolute voice. "The Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation have the most to gain from Faizin's death."

"But you can't overlook the smuggling, Governor."

"I refuse to believe that Faizin had anything to do with this." The acting governor spoke firmly.

"Governor, these documents were found in his room."

"They were planted. They had to be. It's a poorly disguised effort to smear a good man's name."

"Maybe," Aang said. "But I need to investigate every lead."

"If word of this gets out, Avatar, it will be devastating." Tonshi's face creased with worry. "The colonies will lose any respect that Faizin managed to gain for us. You cannot-"

The door burst open.

Sho's voice: "Avatar, look out!"

There was a scream and a crash. Aang then realised that Tonshi was a foot off the ground with General Khan's hand tightly gripping his throat.

"Tonshi!" Khan's face flared with anger.

Aang jumped to his feet, flicked his hand out, breaking Khan's hold on Tonshi, and stepped between them. Tonshi fell back against the wall, gagging and clutching his throat. Aang's break caught Khan by surprise but he moved quickly, going for Tonshi again. Aang Pushed him back with Air. The general staggered and then Sho was around him, putting his arms in a hold.

The whole thing was over in less than half a minute yet Aang felt like he had run a race. He took a shuddering, adrenalin-laced breath. "What is going on?" he demanded.

The room felt thick with tension. Tonshi was still coughing, hauling in breath. His neck was starting to bruise. The servants panted and stood in shock or terror, sometimes switching between both. Khan was silent.

"Well?" Aang stormed over to the general. "Answer me!"

Khan met Aang, stare for stare, unflinching against the Avatar's anger.

"I'm waiting," Aang asked in a dangerously quiet voice.

Khan looked at him and then his face relaxed into boredom. "I will tell you, Avatar but first this spiderape must get off of me."

"Don't listen to him, Avatar," Sho muttered through clenched teeth. His tendons stood up along his arms. Khan had to be pulling harder than it looked. "He'll kill the Governor."

"I will not," Khan threw back. He looked at Aang. "I will not."

Aang looked at him, trying to gage the old general's mood. Something was not right. "Sho, let him go."

"But Avatar!"

"Now, lieutenant." Aang would let this play out. For now.

Reluctantly Sho let go of his hold. Khan stumbled forward and worked his arms. Tonshi stepped up beside Aang, looking groggy.

"Talk fast, General," Aang called.

Khan's face flashed anger at the acting governor. "I have reason to believe this..._man_," and he spat the words out, "killed Governor Faizin."

Tonshi's eyes bulged. "_What?_"

Aang held up a hand and acting governor sputtered his words to a halt. "Explain," Aang asked calmly.

"He destroyed Faizin's body, deliberately interfering with this investigation," Khan charged.

"What?" Aang swung his head to Tonshi. "Governor?"

Tonshi's face couldn't decide whether to be shocked or outraged. "Governor Faizin was given a formal cremation. As a governor of a Fire Nation colony his funeral services followed traditional Fire Nation custom: all deceased ones are to be cremated on the sunset of their death. There was no cover up involved and I resent your accusation, General."

Khan sneered. "Tradition be damned, Governor. You just destroyed a vital piece of evidence and that makes you a prime suspect, in my opinion."

"Do you think I would be so stupid as to not have the body examined beforehand, General?" Tonshi countered. He moved to his desk and pulled out a scroll from a drawer. He handed it to Aang. "This report is from our physician who examined his body."

"This means nothing!" Khan shouted, pointing at the scroll. "How can we trust what's written in a _report_, especially from a healer you chose?"

"And we should trust your opinion instead?" Tonshi retorted. "A man who cares nothing for our people?"

"That's enough!" Aang shouted. Tonshi shut his mouth but his head was going purple. Khan, on the other hand...The General made all the gestures of being angry but something was wrong. Like his heart wasn't in it. Like...

Aang's temper flared and he felt dangerously close to lashing out. "Everyone. Get out." He managed through a jaw stiff with anger.

Tonshi turned to Aang, protest ready on his lips. It died away quickly when Aang returned his look. The acting governor began to walk quickly out the door, his servants following. Sho looked warily at Aang and decided that it was best that he left too. When Khan made to leave Aang called out.

"No General. You stay with me."

Khan only nodded once and stayed put.

When everyone finally left Aang decided to play it safe and made a cushion of Air around the room. It was a difficult trick but it effectively soundproofed the room. After that was done he gave himself ten seconds to cool down before turning to Khan. It didn't work.

"Are you _insane?_" Aang yelled.

"Some people have said so." Khan had the nerve to stand casually, his previous act of temper nowhere to be seen.

"I thought I made it clear, General," Aang continued. "Very clear. No more testing."

"You did, Avatar. But it is the way I work. And it gets results."

"Well, it's not the way I work and since this is my investigation you'll do things my way."

Khan's face blanked for a moment and then he smiled. "Of course, Avatar." The smile did not reach his eyes.

"You not convincing me Khan," Aang levelled at him.

"I can't make promises, Avatar," the general replied. "Not when this test was such a success."

That pulled Aang up short. "How?" he asked suspiciously.

Khan smiled again. "I thought it was obvious what I was trying to figure out."

Aang stared hard at Khan, thinking it over in his head. "You wanted to know whether he killed Faizin."

Khan only nodded.

"Well?" Aang asked impatiently.

"No, he didn't."

Aang huffed in frustration. "All that for nothing."

"Not necessarily," Khan mused. "We know that he can't Earthbend. Otherwise he would have defended himself with it."

Aang started. "You thought Tonshi could Earthbend?"

Khan shrugged. "It hasn't been the first time that an official has kept their bending secret."

"I could have told you that Tonshi can't Earthbend."

Khan smiled. "I prefer to see things with my own eyes. Besides that's not all of it. He gave us that." He pointed to the scroll in Aang's hand.

Aang frowned at the curled scroll. Something about it just...didn't seem right. "Do you trust this?"

Khan shrugged again. "No, but there's no harm in looking at it."

Aang nodded and unrolled. The report was short and it didn't take them long to read it.

"Typical," Khan sneered. "What else would you expect from a report done in just a few hours. It's not but a rush job. They cared more for his _funeral service_ than they did finding out how he died."

"Not everything's a waste," Aang said. He pointed to a particular text. "Look here. The rock spire which killed him went straight through his heart."

"Instant death." Khan's tone was thoughtful.

"Yes. That's some skill with Earthbending right there."

"Indeed." Khan pursed his lips. "How interesting."

"What is it, General?" Aang asked warily.

"Avatar, I wonder if you'll condone an experiment?"

"What kind of experiment?"

Khan's smile was knowing. "I promise you no one will get hurt."

Aang frowned. The General had a strange opinion of when a person was hurt or not. But his curiosity won out. "Fine, General, but-"

"Excellent!" Khan opened the hallway door. Two servants were waiting outside. "You," he levelled a finger at one of them. "The Avatar and I require a room. It is to be an exact likeness of former Governor Faizin's study. Do this now."

The servant blinked. "Sir, I..."

"Did you not hear me?" Khan's voice hardened. "Go. Now."

The servant left.

"Khan, what are you doing?" Aang asked.

"Watch and see, Avatar," he replied. "With any luck this should clear some things up."

* * *

Sho walked the halls of the mansion aimlessly. Around him the servants moved with stiff purpose. The Avatar and Khan were doing something that had all of them in a stir. Sho wished he could be a part of it. _Well, now you're just feeling sorry for yourself. It's shameful._ He straightened his back and decided to at least look useful. He made his way to the stables.

Appa was still there, of course. The sky bison raised his head at his approach.

"Hello there," Sho said carefully.

The animal sniffed the air cautiously and then rested his head again. Apparently Sho was no threat. The lieutenant smiled wryly at that.

"I thought with the investigation that not much attention has been paid to you." Sho said. Did it feel ridiculous speaking to an animal? A little. But it was said that the Avatar's sky bison was actually fairly intelligent.

"If it's any consolation," Sho continued, sitting himself beside the great animal's head, "I feel the same."

Appa turned an eye towards him and then looked away.

"Actually, I don't even know why the Fire Lord asked me to help with this investigation." Sho turned quickly to Appa. "Don't get me wrong! It is a great honour to serve the Fire Lord and the Avatar."

Appa snorted.

"It's just that..." and Sho plucked at some hay. "The Avatar and the General are so much more experienced in this kind of thing than I am. I just don't know what I'm contributing to all this. Do you know what I'm saying?"

He turned to Appa. The animal made a sort of coughing noise. Sho grimaced. "Yeah, I didn't think so."

And then Appa vomited all over his lap.

"Well," Sho said after a moment, breathing through his mouth. "That can't be good."

* * *

Aang and Khan stood in a room that was almost the same as Faizin's study. The proportions were slightly smaller here but there were the same large bay windows. They were open to show the forests sheltering under Mount Kawayama. Aang admired the view for a moment, wishing he could take Appa for a flight down there, then turned around to see Khan ordering the servants again. The room they were in was a small personal library and Khan was having the servants remove some of the shelves to make way for a desk and chair.

"There. Leave it there," Khan ordered to the servants who were placing the desk down. "Excellent. You may leave now."

They filed out; some shooting hostile looks at the General when they thought he wasn't looking. Aang waited till they closed the door before asking Khan what they were doing.

"Avatar, do you not see what this is?"

Aang glanced around. "A replica of Faizin's study. Why?"

Khan's look was mocking. "You know, I sometimes wonder how you ever defeated Ozai."

"Maybe I'll show you one day," Aang replied, smiling dangerously.

Khan's face blanked and then he abruptly laughed. "On second thought, Avatar, I'd rather not know."

"Wise decision, General," Aang grinned wickedly. "I'll ask again, why did we make a replica of Faizin's study?"

"Avatar I'll show you. If you'll please sit in the chair."

Aang complied. "Now what?"

Suddenly the ground erupted as a spire of rock hurtled toward Aang. Aang should and reacted instantaneously, Pulling up a wall of rock. The spire shattered before it even reached the desk.

Aang felt his heart hammer in his chest. Khan stood opposite him, hand returning from its extension. He felt his anger flare.

"Khan!"

"Before you say anthing, Avatar," Khan interrupted, holding up a hand. "You should know that I was never intending to hurt you. I was demonstrating a point."

"And what point is that?" Aang practically spat the words out.

Khan smiled. "Technically you are an Earthbender, yes? As an Earthbender you acted instinctively to the danger and protected yourself. Faizin was not an Earthbender."

"_That_ was your point? We knew that already! Or were you thinking that Faizin was a _secret bender_ too?"

"The experiment is not finished, Avatar," Khan said calmly. "Your part was simply the control result."

"'Control result'."

"Yes, a basis for us to work from." Khan crumbled the rock spire and wall. "I apologise Avatar but it was necessary to surprise you so we could have more accurate results." He opened the bay windows and Pushed the debris out. It fell into the flood water below. He then smoothed the surface of the floor. When he was finished the room looked almost the same as before, if a little scarred. "You'll like this next part even less, I'll imagine."

Khan opened the door. "You," he called, "Come."

In walked Sai Lin.

Aang understood immediately what Khan had in mind. "No."

"Relax, Avatar. I have this under control," Khan replied calmly.

"Khan-"

"I said relax, Avatar. She'll be alright. Won't you girl?"

Sai Lin looked suspiciously at both of them but nodded.

"You see?" Khan smiled. "You have nothing to fear. Why don't you sit down, girl?"

Sai Lin hesitated then sat in the chair. She was hardly relaxed, though. Neither was Aang for that matter. He felt himself begin to sweat. He hoped Khan knew what he was doing here.

"There's a good girl," Khan reassured. His smile had little affect on Sai Lin. Aang didn't blame her. The General's smile was hardly pleasant.

"Tell me, girl-"

"Her name is Sai Lin," Aang interrupted.

"Tell me, _girl_," Khan continued. "How old are you?"

"Seventeen," Sai Lin said, voice stiff.

"How long have you been in service at the Governor's house?

"Since I was twelve."

"And what sort of master was Faizin?"

"_Governor_ Faizin," Sai Lin emphasised, "was a good man."

"So they tell me," Khan said blandly. "Did he ever bed you?"

"What?"

"Khan!" Aang shouted.

Khan raised his hands in a placating gesture. "It's not uncommon. A lot of officials have a taste for the lower class. Did he, girl?"

"No." Sai Lin's cheeks were suffused with crimson. Aang couldn't tell if it was from embarrassment or anger.

"And no wife?" Khan mused. "Hmmm... Perhaps his interests lay...elsewhere."

"Governor Faizin's wife died five summer's ago from fever," Sai Lin snapped. "She cold have been healed but the Earth Kingdom refused our colony a physician. They thought we were too radically thinking. Governor Faizin managed to gain us a physician only two summer's ago."

"That's too bad," Khan replied a little insincerely.

"Yes, too bad for all the sick colonists who could have been treated if the Fire Nation hadn't conscripted all our healers and the Earth Kingdom hadn't put an embargo on our trade," Sai Lin said bitterly.

"I didn't know about that," Aang said. "I'm sorry."

"'Sorry' won't help us, Avatar," Sai Lin said coldly.

"This might." and Khan Earthbent.

Sai Lin screamed and raised her hands in a useless defensive gesture. Fortunately for her the rock spire stopped just before the desk.

There was silence in the room except for the maid's heavy breathing.

Khan smiled. "Excellent."

The door burst open and the second servant rushed in. He saw the rock spire and skidded to a halt.

"I don't believe I called for you," Khan said. "Out. Now."

The servant hesitated. Khan took a step forward. It had the desired effect. The servant took a jerking step backward then turned and ran out.

Aang dashed over to Sai Lin. The servant girl was very still, taking in sharp breaths.

"Sai Lin," Aang laid a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Are you alright?"

She held her breath for a moment then took a shuddering intake of air.

"Sai Lin? I'm sorry." Aang knelt beside her.

The servant girl turned her head to him slowly, her face almost frozen in surprise. And then she suddenly bounded from her chair, grabbed a book from a shelf and hurled it at Khan.

"Are you crazy?" she screamed.

Khan calmly dodged. Sai Lin threw another book and another before Aang grabbed her hands. "Sai Lin, stop."

She screamed in his face and pulled against him. "He tried to kill me!"

"On the contrary, girl," Khan said brightly, "You have just given us a breakthrough in this case."

That jerked Sai Lin up. She stared at the General in confusion. "I did?"

Aang let her go. "She did?"

"Yes," Khan smiled.

Sai Lin's eyes became suspicious again. "How?"

"Faizin is said to have died from the rock spire hitting directly into his heart." Khan's voice took on a lecturing tone. "The Avatar and I can both attest that that is a difficult thing to accomplish. The bender must either have excellent accuracy or be fairly lucky." He moved closer to the spire, circling it. "What's more, Earthbending is not, shall we say, a stealthy weapon."

"And what does this have to do with almost impaling me?" Sai Lin asked heatedly.

"Everything," Khan replied. His voice became eager. "Before, I attacked the Avatar in the same manner as I did you. He reacted as any trained bender should; he blocked it."

"I'm not a bender, neither was Governor Faizin."

"But you still reacted." Khan's eyes lit up, as if relishing the moment. "The Avatar was a control test, a baseline reaction. But you, a non-bender, you reacted anyway. You pulled your hands up in meaningless defence, your legs jerked up, your body instinctively moving to curl itself up against attack. The point is...!"Khan leaned forward to Sai Lin and the maid held her ground. "...girl, you moved. And so would have Faizin."

Khan leaned back again and smugly folded his arms. Aang stared at him trying to follow his logic. And then it dawned on him.

"But," Sai Lin asked, "I don't understand. What has Faizin moving have to do with anything?"

Khan frowned and turned away in disgust. Aang explained instead. "Because, Sai Lin, to hit a man in the heart with an Earthbending spire is so much more difficult when the target is moving. Which means either Governor Faizin's killer was a very lucky shot or..."

"Or Governor Faizin could not move," Sai Lin finished in a quiet voice.

Aang smiled faintly. "Yes."

"There are other options," Khan said. He stood by the window, looking out. "But that is the most likely."

"Poison probably," Aang replied.

"But Governor Faizin was fine when I left him," Sai Lin said, shaking her head. "I only served him tea minutes before he died."

"Some drugs work fast," Aang stated.

"However they did it," Khan spoke, still by the window, "the killer would need to leave fast. As I said before, Earthbending is hardly a silent weapon."

"Why kill him with Earthbending then, anyway?" Aang asked, coming up beside Khan. "Why not just stick to poisons?"

Khan shrugged. "To make a statement? Frankly I couldn't care less why. Now the quickest exit would be..."

"Wait a minute," Aang cut in. "What do you mean, 'you don't care'?"

"Why should I?"

Aang blinked. "Why are you here if you don't care about why Faizin died?"

"Not caring about why Faizin died does not equal not wanting to solve this case." Khan frowned. "I only care about finding the murderer. Worrying about motive is your job."

Aang frowned back. "You should care about motive too. The reasons for Faizin's death could lead to another war."

Khan's smile did not reach his eyes. "A good thing we have you then, Avatar, to stop it."

Aang couldn't believe this man's complete disregard for what was at stake here. He felt his anger rise. "Listen-"

"Avatar," Sai Lin interrupted. "Look."

Aang and Khan turned to look where she pointed out the window. At first he couldn't see what she meant but then he noticed something flashing in the sun; something in the forest surrounding the town, below Mount Kawayama.

"What is it?" Khan asked, his voice tinged with frustration.

"One way to find out," Aang said. "Coming General?"


	6. In the Swamps

**Chapter 6: In the Swamps**

"Avatar!"

Sho burst into the Avatar's rooms. He had run the whole way from the stables, vainly trying to get off as much vomit as possible from his clothes.

No one was in. Sho heaved for breath and then gagged at the smell rising off of him. Sweat and vomit did not make a good mix. Dismayed, he pulled at his shirt. It hung damp and sticky. Before he had come to this town Sho had never let his clothes so much as get stained before changing. Now, he had not only gone through both his uniforms but had also badly dented his armour. He sighed; this place was going to be the ruin of him.

Something caught his eye on the Avatar's writing desk. Gingerly, Sho moved closer, trying not to let the muck hanging thick on him fall on the floor. There was a necklace on the desk; Sho had never seen its like. He had little understanding of jewellery but even he could tell the necklace was of rare worth. It was made up of small black stone, carved with elemental symbols, looped through deep blue silk. It seemed to catch whatever light was in the room. Sho picked it up in fascination. What was the Avatar doing with such a priceless piece of jewellery?

The floor creaked. Sho spun, unconsciously pocketing the necklace. Sai Lin stood in the open doorway. Her dress was dirtied for some reason and her face a little pale. For a moment Sho wondered if she was alright.

"What happened to you?" she asked with characteristic bluntness. Sho sighed inwardly; she was alright.

"Where's the Avatar?" he asked, coming toward her.

She wrinkled her nose. "You stink."

"Where is he?" Sho demanded.

Sai Lin blinked and the mocking tone left her voice. "He saw something in the forest. He and the General have gone to investigate."

"They went without me?" Sho asked.

Sai Lin shrugged uncomfortably. "I guess so."

_Great_, Sho thought. _Now even the Avatar thinks I'm useless._

"What's wrong?" Sai Lin asked.

"Appa is sick," Sho replied distractedly. He wondered if he shouldn't catch up to the others.

"Sick?" Sai Lin repeated, disbelievingly.

Sho nodded absently. He supposed he should stay at the mansion. He didn't know where exactly the others went and someone had to stay with Appa. Sho just wished it wasn't him.

"Here," Sai Lin said after a moment. "Come with me."

Sho pulled himself out of his thoughts and turned to her. "What?"

"You need new clothes, Lieutenant," she said matter-of-factly. "You can't very well represent the Fire Nation looking like that."

She made her way to the door and stood waiting for him. Sho stared at her a moment. He wasn't sure how to take this sudden kindness from her. Did he really look that pathetic? He eyed his clothes and wrinkled his face briefly in revulsion. Yes, yes he did. He sighed and followed her. At the very least it was something to do with waiting for the others. He grimaced again and not for the smell. He hated waiting.

* * *

Swamp gas belched in Aang's face and he pulled his head back, gagging. Ten minutes or so into their hike and he and Khan had ended up knee deep in thick, sludgy flood water. It sucked at their feet and tired them out quickly. A few times it was all Aang could do not to end up tripping into it. Unseen potholes and roots were a constant danger. The steaming heat didn't help either. Neither did the mosquitoes. They hung constantly around his exposed head and neck, biting painfully. Khan had recommended pasting his face with dredged up swamp mud, as he himself had already done. Aang thought he'd only do that when he got desperate. Which he soon might be.

"This place reeks," he said, breathing through his mouth.

"It's the decomposing vegetation," Khan replied, calm as ever. He had stripped to his under shirt and drawstring pants, leaving his dark green robe at the tree-line. "That and likely a few small animals too," he continued. "I'd avoid any firebending, Avatar. It's likely flammable."

Aang eyed the water carefully. "Sorta like the time me and my friends got stuck in a swamp." He caught himself on a tree branch to keep from falling. "Wasn't fun then, either."

"I fought General Lang in the jungles of the Kintoshi Islands," Khan replied. "It was the rainy season and after our beach landing met with heavy fire we ended up hiding in the jungle. We stayed there for two months and by the end of it we came out looking like we had plants growing off us. Maybe even a few animals nesting too."

Despite himself, Aang smiled. He usually hated war stories but the image of Khan with a squirrelrat curled up on his moss-covered head was too funny not to crack smile at. "How did you win?"

Khan stopped and turned his head back. "What makes you think we won?"

That stopped Aang. "You didn't win?"

"I did," Khan said flatly. He continued walking again. "After five weeks of skirmishes, hit-and-runs and near full blown engagements we ended up resorting to guerrilla tactics. It wasn't pretty but it taught me something."

"What's that?"

"That the end will always justify the means." He stopped. "We're here."

Aang waded up to him. The water level dropped as he got nearer, the ground inclining upward. Ahead the trees cleared around a knoll. There was a brown and green patched tent set up on the top of it. Around it wooden planks had been haphazardly placed - a roughshod set of boardwalks. There was a sheltered fire pit and a large mound of something that had dull canvas thrown over it and was lashed down for good measure.

"A smuggler's camp," Aang said with satisfaction. "So Faizin was illegally importing." He stepped up to the camp, his feet squelching in the mud. He smiled grimly as he saw what had first caught his attention back at the mansion. A mirror shard caught the light as it lay in the muddy grass.

"It seems that way," Khan said. His tone seemed unconvinced, however.

"You don't think so?"

"It seems a little obvious, don't you think?" He replied, poking around.

Aang shrugged. "Sometimes the most obvious answer is the right one. Besides, even if someone went to all this trouble of setting up a fake camp it still means that something bigger is going on here that we still haven't figured out."

Khan only nodded. He was eying the canvas-covered mound. He pulled the cover off to reveal a stack of wooden crates, labelled as fruit containers. Khan frowned at that and then Pulled for rock and formed a stone-gloved hand. He threw his hand down at the nearest crate and broke the lid open. He paused to look at its contents. "Now that would have to be the strangest fruit I've ever seen."

Aang came over and whistled. The crate was packed with swords. "Definitely."

"Yamamachi makes no weapons," Khan said. "Someone is bringing these in."

"What do you think?" Aang asked. "Rebellion?"

Khan snorted. "The colonies don't have the guts."

Aang fell silent for a moment, considering. "We should go back. Acting-Governor Tonshi needs to see this. So does Sho."

"And what exactly will those two tell us?" Khan asked, contempt laid thick on his words. "We should keep following the trail."

"As much as you don't like him, Lieutenant Sho is still a part of this investigation and he needs to be involved."

"He is young and immature," Khan countered. "And I have no idea why the Fire Lord even considered him as part of this investigation."

"Well I do," Aang said firmly.

The General blinked at that and stared hard at Aang. Aang met his gaze and returned it tenfold. Khan finally lowered his eyes. "Someone should still follow the trail," he muttered.

"_I'll _follow the trail. You can take some of these swords and-"

His words cut off as Khan tackled him to the ground. It took Aang a second to recover from the shock. He pushed Khan off of him.

"What are you-?"

But Khan had already scrambled to his feet. He Pulled and the ground rushed up, forming a wall in front of them. Something pelted at the barrier.

Aang stood. "What-?"

The wall broke and a rock, the size of a man's head, sped past them and crashed into the crates.

Khan grimaced. "What do you think?"

The General ran down the hill.

"Khan, wait!" Aang called, but Khan plunged headlong into the swamp.

Another rock whistled through the air towards Aang. Without thinking, Aang Pushed and swatted it away. It smacked into the ground and tumbled down the hill, flinging mud everywhere.

Aang scowled at the tree-line. "Fine," and ran to face his attackers.


	7. Something Wrong

**Chapter 7: Something Wrong**

Aang jumped into the swamp water and pressed his back to a tree. The flood water disrupted the vibrations he felt through the ground. He couldn't tell if there two assailants or twenty.

"Khan!" Aang called.

A hail of rocks flew at him. Aang moved on instinct and bent the flood water. Thick whipcords of water caught or knocked the rocks aside. One rock hit the tree behind him, shattering and splintering the wood. He ran towards the direction the of attack before the woodchips could even brush his back.

Except there was no one there, no one he could sense. Aang cursed. There was a crashing noise. He turned his head to the sound. A scream followed.

"Khan!"

The water vibrated with amplified movement. Aang pushed the water away from him, hoping that that way he could tell where the others were.

There. He smiled; there were two, directly ahead. He took a step forward...

And almost fell on his face. Aang looked down at his feet; they were sunk to the knees in mud. Aang cursed again, loudly; when he pushed the water away the mud and dirt had stayed and thickened. It was a stupid mistake from him.

They came at him then, Earthbenders. They jumped down from the trees and ran lithely across the ground. Aang earthbent and collapsed the mud beneath them, but they hopped up quickly, propelling themselves forward with their own bending.

Aang airbent the ground directly below him, trying to force himself out of the mud. His first attacker, a bearded man, launched himself at him. Aang Pushed down with all his might and catapulted into the air. He flew over both men and spun out of his fall. He wasn't prepared for how slippery the ground was, though, and slid backwards.

By the time Aang regained his balance the Earthbenders were coming for him again. The second man, clean-shaven, skidded to a halt and Pushed. The ground heaved and rolled like a wave.

Aang switched forms faster than most men could think and Pulled the flood water back. The torrent crashed into the upheaved mud, liquidising it back into the dirty water. Aang bent again, not waiting for the Earthbenders to recover, and wrapped a water tentacle around the bearded man, and flung him hard into a tree. The man hit it with a hard, wet smack with enough force behind him to shake the trunk. The bearded man dropped into the water, unconscious.

Aang put him out of his mind after one quick, hopeful thought that the man wasn't too seriously hurt. His clean-shaven opponent was already hitting back, uprooting from the bottom of the swamp heavy boulders and hurling them at Aang. Aang was ready, though; he threw up his hands, bending up sheets of water that slowed down the stones. When the missiles came closer he knocked them away like they were nothing but rubble.

Just as Aang thought he was getting the upper hand the ground beneath him collapsed. He plunged into the water, going under. Gasping in surprise, he ended up swallowing some of the murky water. Panic gripped him for a minute before he forced it away and head his head out of the water.

He sputtered and coughed and tried not to think what he had just swallowed. He whipped his head around, trying to spot the Earthbender. He saw him, just as the man threw his hands forward. The earth rushed before him.

Aang didn't think; he just moved. He jumped from the water with the ease of an Airbender, spun and kicked his leg out. A gale snapped through the trees, tore the leaves from the branches and chopped up the water. It knocked the Earthbender off his feet and threw him hard against a tree. Before he could get his wits back, Aang landed and Pushed. The water rose and iced around man's legs and torso, imprisoning him. He struggled for a minute or so but finally relented.

Aang sighed heavily, glad that it was over. The whole fight might've only taken a few minutes but it was tiring work. He frowned at the man. Pulling the ground out from under him had been Aang's trick. He didn't think that someone could copy it so easily. He decided to be more cautious in the future.

"Alright," he said, approaching his prisoner. "Who are you? A smuggler? An assassin? Did you kill Faizin?"

The man smiled a little. Aang didn't like that smile. It wasn't just mocking; it was knowing. He felt a hot flush of anger. He put his face up close to the man's.

"Talk," he said stiffly.

The man's smile widened a little. Aang blinked; something was wrong, very wrong. He felt his skin crawl, his stomach go hollow. He twitched his eyes to the side, to the man's hand. Something flickered, sparked in his palm. Aang went cold. Something _ignited_.

The air turned into fire.

That was all Aang was able to register before Khan tackled him into the water.

* * *

Sho sat beside Appa, his hand against the animal's side and trying not to look down at his clothes. He should have realised that when Sai Lin meant a change of clothes she meant _Yamamachi_ style clothes. There had been perverse delight in her eyes when she handed him the clothes. Appa groaned and shifted his head a little. Sho eyed him and continued to pat his side. The sky bison was breathing heavily and had thrown up twice since the first time.

"Well?" he asked.

The town physician popped his head over the large animal's body and pulled the hearing tubes from his ears. "No fluid in the lungs, but his stomach is in riot."

The healer walked around to Sho. "What's he eaten in the past twenty-four hours?"

Sho turned his head to Sai Lin who stood at the far end of the stables; Appa still didn't like her.

"Just hay," she said. Her eyes widened a little. "You don't think it got rot, do you?"

"With the rainy season, it's likely," the healer said. "Just a bit of food poisoning; it'll pass through his body in a day or so." He packed his things. "Just give him water and rest and he'll come good eventually. If he doesn't improve by tomorrow let me know."

Sho stood and bowed. "Thank you, sir."

The healer eyed him curiously. "It's Bokku and don't mention it. Anything to help the Avatar."

There was the sound of commotion in the courtyard. Sho turned his head and saw the Avatar running toward him. General Khan walked behind, speaking to Governor Tonshi. The Governor stood a careful distance apart from the General and seemed to be eyeing the sheathed sword that Khan was using for a walking stick.

"Speaking of whom..." Bokku said. "I better tell the Avatar about his sky bison. I'm sure he must be worried."

The Avatar did look anxious. Sho watched the physician meet up with him and explain the details. The Avatar was a right mess, his clothes wet and filthy, his face creased with dirt. Khan looked much the same.

"They look as bad as you did."

Sho glanced at Sai Lin; he hadn't noticed her come to stand next to him. Appa was too sick, apparently, to care about her getting close. "I wonder what happened?"

"Nothing good," Sho replied. Some of the tension had left the Avatar's face while he talked to Bokku but not all of it. He looked grim.

Bokku finally parted and the Avatar continued to the stables.

"How is he?" he asked and squatted beside Appa.

"He'll be okay," Sho answered.

The Avatar made no sign that he heard. He leaned his forehead against the sky bison's and closed his eyes. After a moment Sho saw the Avatar's lips move but his voice was so quiet he didn't hear the words. Appa seemed to react to whatever he was saying. Sho turned his head away, feeling uncomfortable. He felt like an intruder on an intimate scene.

The Avatar stood finally. "Thank you for watching him."

Sho flushed with embarrassment. "It was nothing, Avatar."

"It wasn't 'nothing'," the Avatar replied. "Thank you."

Sho swallowed, resisted a bow and compromised by lowering his eyes. Sho was saved from further embarrassment by the arrival of Khan and the Governor.

"Hmph. Governor Tonshi of course denies any knowledge of the weapons." Khan scowled at Tonshi and the thin man paled a little and took a step further away. Khan was looking more fierce than usual, his appearance dirty and wet and a long graze across the top of his head.

"Avatar, please, you must believe me. I had no idea about the swords." Tonshi protested.

"I still say we arrest you," Khan said.

Tonshi blanched further and spluttered before the Avatar raised his hand. "Our evidence is circumstantial, General. Faizin is the only one we can connect to the smuggling."

"Avatar-!" Tonshi interrupted but the Avatar cut him off.

"The situation has changed, though." He paused and looked around at them all. "I get the feeling this goes beyond Yamamachi."

No one said anything to that. The Avatar's face turned decisive. "Governor Tonshi, I need a moment with my colleagues alone, please."

Tonshi nodded mutely and he and Sai Lin left the stables.

"Pretty clothes, Lieutenant," Khan mused. "Taking a liking to it here?"

"The mud does wonders for your face, General," Sho retorted. "Can't hardly see it."

Khan looked surprised for a moment then suddenly laughed. "A joke, Lieutenant? We may be taking the rod out of your rear yet."

Sho went crimson with anger and embarrassment and opened his mouth before the Avatar stepped between them.

"If you two are done?"

Sho lowered his eyes, this time his face red only with shame. A tense silence fell on all of them. Sho decided to be brave and break it.

"What...what happened in the forest, Avatar?"

The Avatar was still hard-eyed but after a moment relayed the events in the swamp.

"I'm sorry I couldn't help," Sho said quietly when the Avatar had finished.

"You wouldn't have been any," Khan replied bluntly. "No firebending, remember?" He looked at the Avatar with disapproval. "I can't believe you forgot that."

"I didn't firebend," the Avatar said.

"And so the swamp _magically_ set itself alight then?" Khan mocked. "It must have been you; who else could it have been? The Earthbenders?" He scoffed at that to show how preposterous it was.

"Maybe they had 'secret bending'," the Avatar mused.

Khan stared at him before laughing loudly. "We have jokers all round today."

When the Avatar said nothing Khan frowned at him. "It is a joke, yes? What you're saying is impossible."

"I can't say for certain what I saw," the Avatar replied quietly. "Maybe he had flint or a match in his hand, but I'd like to see a wet match that can strike." He paused and creased his brow in thought. "No. No, I don't know what I saw but I know what I felt when I looked at that Earthbender, and what I felt was something very wrong."

There was an uncomfortable silence before Sho stirred. "What should we do then, Avatar?"

The paused before answering, "Normally I'd want to consult with Zuko or Kuei about this but since Appa is sick and riding would take too long I say we continue the investigation. I'll go and follow the smugglers' trail. You two will stay here and continue to search for evidence."

Sho and Khan were united in their protests.

"Avatar, that is too dangerous," Sho said. "One of us should go with you."

Khan's snort was vulgar. "It's more than dangerous, it's stupid. What if you find more of those benders are along the trail?"

"You think I can't handle them?" Aang asked. He smiled at them reassuringly. "I appreciate your concerns, both of you. But if this is anything like I fear it is then it's a job for the Avatar alone."

Khan snorted again. "Foolishness," he muttered under his breath.

Sho lowered his head, his face creased with worry. He was wholeheartedly against the idea, but what could he say? The Avatar had made his decision.

"I'll change and leave immediately," the Avatar said. "Don't wan the trail to go cold. I get the feeling it heads straight to the mountain pass, though. It's the only way out to the other colonies." He looked at their faces and frowned. "I'm not stupid. If you don't hear from me in three days come look for me. Or better yet, go tell Zuko and Kuei."

"In _two_ days," Khan insisted.

Aang conceded with a nod. "Two, then."


	8. Modus Operandi

**Chapter 8: Modus Operandi**

Aang flew over the forests of Mount Kawayama with his glider and easily spotted the blackened, charred trees surrounding the smugglers' camp. He had been enjoying his brief flight but the sight below him darkened his mood. It seemed everything in this place did that to him lately. He couldn't wait to be out of this town.

He landed on the hill and eyed the burnt trees. Khan had unfortunately killed his attackers and the gas explosion had taken the two that Aang had captured. He'd wished the General had been a little more careful but it couldn't be helped. He was starting to think that maybe the Earthbenders wouldn't have lived long enough for interrogation. Aang's prisoner had certainly made it clear that he would rather die that be questioned; which ruled out that they were smugglers. Aang figured that sort was more interested in self-preservation than anything else. Who were they then?

Aang brushed the question aside for the moment, knelt, placed a hand against the ground and closed his eyes. He wasn't a skilled tracker like Sokka or Zuko but he did have one talent that neither of his friends possessed. A friend had once told him that everything on the planet was connected and if you knew how to read the earth then you could follow those connections.

A jumble of impressions jumped into his mind. Aang frowned and mentally sifted through them. There were some he could easily recognise and 'toss away', so to speak. The small imprint of animal feet on the grass was the most common impression that Aang could feel and ignored them quickly. Other impressions took a minute longer for him to recognise. Once he figured that the light impacts on trees and ground alike was rain he shifted another large bulk of connections aside. That left the human impressions. A large, violent group of connections could only be the recent attack that he and Khan faced. Feet on the ground were more difficult to read, since there was no way to differentiate them between one person and another. He sorted through them anyway and found the connecting path that led beyond the camp and up to the mountain. Aang opened his eyes and looked behind him. The path that he had found went down in to the flood water again but it seemed to be the widest route through the trees and tangled growth. Wide enough, at any rate, for a small barge carrying a crate to pass through.

He stood, braced himself for the walk ahead and followed the path. The sun began to set as he made his way down.

* * *

Sho stared worriedly out at the horizon, watching the sun sink in the sky. He wondered how the Avatar was going, whether he had found the smugglers' path or not, whether it would be more than just a wild gooseboar chase. Appa lowed deeply next to him. It seemed the sky bison could sense Sho's own fear and knew his master could well be in danger. The lieutenant reached a hand out and patted the animal's side in what he hoped would be comforting.

Appa hadn't thrown up since the physician had seen him and Sho took that as a good sign. The servants had come and taken away all the hay to be burned but there were scattered remains of it littering the stable. Idly, he picked up a piece of straw and twirled it in his hand. _So much trouble,_ he thought, _from such a small thing_. Without thinking he put the straw to his nose and sniffed it. It smelt of nothing but hay. He frowned at that.

A little known fact about the Lieutenant was that his family were farmers. It was not something he exactly felt proud of or spread around to others. It hardly seemed like the noble history that a great warrior should have. And he so wanted to be a great warrior. Still, the knowledge of how to run a farm was embedded in his memory thanks to years of being taught by his father who had learnt it from his father and so on.

For instance, Sho knew that if you didn't harvest before the rains came your whole crop would be ruined. And it had to be stored well too. A bit of damp in your containers and it could spoil the whole of it. And mildew and rot stank; it wasn't like you couldn't tell your yield was spoiled.

He frowned harder at the hay in his hand. Why had no one noticed the rot before? Why hadn't _he_noticed before? He had been distracted by Appa being sick and the Avatar's shocking news that he didn't think to question what was going on. But now... Now there were some questions that needed answering. He stood, patted Appa once and made for the mansion's main house.

He found who he wanted quickly.

"Sai Lin."

The young maid was carrying an empty tray in one hand. She stiffened at the call of her name, turned and bowed. "Lieutenant?"

"The containers that you keep the hay in - would you show them to me?"

Sai Lin frowned a little. "The hay containers, Lieutenant?"

"The ones with the rot. I want to see them."

"Why would you want to...?" She shook her head and bowed formally again. "My apologies, Lieutenant, but the spoiled hay has been burned."

"Show me the containers, then."

"Again, I apologise, but they are closed for cleaning."

"Show me anyway," he insisted.

Sai Lin's frown deepened. "I'm afraid I'm not in a position to help you at the moment. Perhaps you could ask someone else to assist you?"

Sho considered it for a moment then shook his head. "No, just show me where General Khan is."

For some reason that seemed to upset her more. She grumbled something under her breath and led Sho stiffly down the hall.

It turned out Khan was in Faizin's study. Sho's eyes dragged to the stone spire that split through the floor and up the desk; it was impossible not to see that first and foremost. He pulled his eyes away though, and looked to Khan. He stood with his back to the door, staring out one of the open bay windows, watching the sun go down. A cup of tea steamed on the balcony sill.

"I thought I told you I didn't want to be disturbed, girl," Khan said without turning.

"Believe me, _General_, I had no desire to come in here again." Sai Lin did nothing to hide the hostility in her voice. "Lieutenant Sho wanted to see you."

She turned to Sho and bowed. Sho returned the gesture politely, which seemed to give her pause. She seemed on the verge of saying something but her eyes flickered to Khan and her face hardened again.

"What did you say to her to offend her so?" Sho asked after she left.

"I asked for tea," Khan replied flatly. He turned to face Sho. "Is there a reason you're bothering me, Lieutenant?"

"This," he said and held up the straw piece.

Khan's face was blank and he went silent for a moment. "You know," he said finally, "I can show you three different ways of killing you with that piece of straw."

"Only three?" Sho replied derisively.

Khan shrugged. "Any more would just be exaggeration. I trust that's not why you've shown it to me, though."

"No," and Sho related what he knew about storing hay and obviousness of rot.

Khan frowned. "How do you know this?"

Sho gritted his teeth. He hadn't mentioned his family's profession. "A friend of mine...his family are farmers."

Khan arched an eyebrow. "Convenient."

Sho felt his cheeks begin to bloom red. "It doesn't matter how I know it," he said quickly. "All that matters is what this means."

"And what does it mean, Lieutenant?"

Sho took a breath. "Someone is trying to keep us here."

Khan folded his arms in front of him. "Explain."

"Think about it," Sho said. "What is the most benefit that someone could gain from making Appa sick?"

Khan shrugged. "Angering the Avatar?"

"More like cutting off our best exit out of this town."

Khan frowned but motioned for him to continue.

"It's too much of a coincidence. Only an idiot wouldn't notice rotten hay and I would think that Avatar's sky bison would get a proper amount of attention. Without the Appa we're looking at days of travel; too long a time spent away from such an important case. My only conclusion is that Appa was given bad feed on purpose to make us stay in Yamamachi."

"Why?" Khan asked.

Sho considered the question for a moment then shrugged. "I don't know why. Maybe so that you would eventually find the smugglers' camp?"

Khan waved the idea off and took a sip of his tea. "That makes no sense. Why would someone one _want_us to find the camp? So that we'd know that they are bringing in weapons?" His tone made clear what he thought about that idea.

"Well…" Sho said pacing and scrambling for thought. "Maybe…maybe it wasn't about the camp but about the bending?"

Sho stopped his pacing. The bending. He smacked his forehead. "Spirits, General, it was about the bending!"

Khan only arched an eyebrow and took another sip of tea.

"Don't you see?" Sho exclaimed. "They didn't want us to leave so we could see could see an Earthbender bend fire. And not just you and me but the Avatar especially."

Khan stirred. "Wouldn't it be more likely that-."

Sho cut him off. "They knew the Avatar would have to investigate this further." He went cold with a sudden thought. "This is all about him… Spirits, he's up on that mountain by himself."

"Sho, you are jumping to conclusions."

"He's in danger!"

"Lieutenant Sho-!"

"We have to help!"

Sho turned to leave when Khan called him once more. There was something strange in the General's voice that made him stop.

"General, we don't have time to…" Sho's voice trailed off as he looked at Khan. The General was standing as he had before but there was something unnatural about his posture; it was too stiff. The colour in his face had drained.

"General?"

"I…I am prepared to accept your outrageous theory, Lieutenant." Khan's eyes dropped and he smiled bitterly. "This killer is rather predictable."

"General, I don't-?"

"I've been poisoned."

Sho blinked in shock. "How…?" but then he saw the cup of tea in Khan's hand and understood.

"Do me a favour, Lieutenant," Khan said with effort. "Find me that maid."

Sho ran for the door.

"Lieutenant!"

He looked back at Khan. The old general's face creased in discomfort. "I think I'll need a healer, too."

Sho nodded and raced down the halls.

* * *

Khan waited until Sho had left before doubling up in pain. This was not good. He cursed himself for not recognising the taste of Janai's Salvation in his tea sooner. He eased himself to the floor, his back resting against the rock spire.

Janai's Salvation would work fast; already his body was beginning to tremble with convulsions. He would need to try and expel as much of the poison as he could. He opened his mouth and put two fingers down his throat. He gagged once, twice and finally felt his stomach heave. Khan turned on his hands and knees in time to vomit on the floor.

Khan wiped his mouth with a shaky hand and leaned back against the spire. It would not be enough; he needed a healer. In the meantime he had to slow his body functions in order to slow the poison. He smiled mirthlessly. That shouldn't be too hard considering he already felt as weak as a newborn. He took a deep, shuddering breath, closed his eyes and relaxed his body as best he could.

The door opened.

"That was quick," Khan said and opened his eyes. "Oh."

It wasn't the lieutenant. Khan frowned. "You."

The door closed.

* * *

"Sai Lin!" Sho shouted. "Has anyone seen Sai Lin?"

Servants just stared at him dumbfounded. Sho ran down the halls and people had to jump out of his way.

"Sai Lin!"

He began to grab the maids, thinking Sai Lin would be one of them.

"Sai Lin, where are you?"

He turned a corner and staggered into someone.

"Lieutenant," Acting Governor Tonshi asked, "what's going on?"

"Governor, General Khan's been poisoned."

Tonshi's eyes widened. "And you think Sai Lin is responsible?"

"Twice now she's served someone poisoned tea." Sho shook his head in frustration. "There's no time for that now. Khan needs a healer."

It took the thin man a second to process the news before he nodded. "Come with me."

He led Sho down the hall. The Lieutenant felt jittery with nerves and wished the acting governor would move faster; there was so little time….which reminded him. "Governor, you also need to send people to find the Avatar. I fear he's also in danger."

Tonshi nodded again and opened a door. Sho stepped through quickly but came up short.

"There's no one in here," he said, turning. "Governor, where-?"

Something hard smashed on his head. Sho numbly felt his legs fold up beneath him. The breath was knocked out of him and he realised he couldn't draw it back. He turned his head like it was underwater and looked up.

Tonshi looked down on him, a broken vase in his hand. His face was pale. His eyes were wide with terror and determination.

Sho opened his mouth and managed a word. "Why?"

Tonshi responded by bringing the broken vas down on his head again. Lieutenant Sho blacked out.

* * *

Aang chose his steps carefully as he made his way through a cavity in the mountain. An hour back he had come to a sort of staging area in the forest, where both empty and loaded crates, along with a barge, were hidden under canvas. From there he had made his way up the mountain, following the path he had found. That had led him to the cave that he was now following.

Aang guessed that the sun had set outside. He wondered briefly how the others were and longer on how Appa was. The cave was natural and hardly straight. He held one hand up and carried a tongue of flame on his palm, lighting his way.

Aang glanced at the cave walls and old memories stirred in him. With a smile he realised he'd spent a fair amount of his earlier adventures exploring caves. His fondest memory, of course, had been when he and his friends made their way through the cave of Oma and Shu. His smile widened as he recalled his _almost_first kiss.

He tripped on a rock and stumbled into the wall. Aang sighed; he really had to stop daydreaming. Except the longer he stayed in Yamamachi the more he found himself wishing he were somewhere else. And, most often, that 'somewhere else' included Katara. He missed her badly and yet he found himself increasingly nervous about seeing her again. He just wished he knew what was wrong with the necklace he had made for her. Until he found that out he couldn't ask her a very important question.

Thoughts of Katara dropped to the back of his mind as the cave opened up dramatically. The path dropped off on his left and hugged the wall on his right. Aang leaned over the edge and held his fire up to see. The mountain underpass ran below him, the one that led to the other colonies. The walls were lined lit torches in brackets. He looked up again at the path in front of him. It descended down and seemed to join the road.

Here was a very strong hint that Yamamachi was getting weapons from its sister colonies. At the very least it more than suggested that something was afoot with some of the colonies.

Aang felt the vibrations of running feet before he heard a scream. It came from the Yamamachi end of the road. There was another scream. Aang leapt down to the road with the aid of airbending and took off toward the screams.

There was a lone woman running in the dark. Aang halted as he recognised the person and then ran faster towards them.

"Sai Lin, what's happened?"

The maid clutched at him. Tears stained her face. "Avatar, you have to come back. Lieutenant Sho and the General have been attacked."

"What?"

"It was Governor Tonshi, Avatar. You have to stop him."

There were shouts down the road. Sai Lin reacted to the noises with terror.

"Avatar, please help me. The Governor has sent men after me."

Aang pried Sai Lin's hands off him and stepped protectively in front of her. "Stay behind me, Sai Lin."

Aang shifted his feet. The vibrations in the ground told him there were twelve men. He raised his staff up in a defensive position. Twelve was doable. He could take them. He thought briefly of the Earthbender in the swamp who bent fire but shook it from his mind. He was the Avatar. Few men, no matter how skilled, could be called a match for him.

He was so focused on the oncoming men that he sensed too late the danger behind him. Something small and sharp pierced his skin. Aang grunted in surprise and turned around.

"Sai Lin?"

The young maid stepped back from him. She held what looked like a long needle in her hand. She looked…troubled.

"I'm sorry, Avatar."

"What-?"

The twelve men came for him. Aang spun and whipped his staff around, Pushing a slice of air. A few were hit but most withstood the snapping gale. Aang changed forms and Pushed again, this time with earth. The underpass's walls broke with pillars of crisscrossing stone. Still more fell but something was wrong. Aang could feel it inside him. Whatever Sai Lin had stabbed him with it was doing something to his bending. Aang made to shift the earth beneath the men but his bending faltered. Aang Pushed with air for what was meant to be a gale of wind but it sputtered and died away. He began to panic, then.

One of the men bent a rock at him. Aang raised his hands to Pull up a stone wall but the earth didn't respond. The rock projectile hit him square in the gut. Aang staggered and fell back, losing his staff. Someone else came at him with fists. Aang Pulled for fire but it didn't come. He caught a right hook to his jaw.

And then they were on him, all of them. They hit and kicked him and Aang Pulled for bending that wasn't there. He dodged and ducked as best he could but it wasn't enough. Under a barrage of blows Aang fell to his knees and hit the ground hard.

Aang sucked for air through clenched teeth. He staggered and struggled to push himself up. A hard, booted foot caught him beneath the ribs and he fell again.

"Stop!"

That was Sai Lin's voice. Aang managed to raise his head and look at her through the crowd of men. Her face was unreadable. Someone came to stand beside her. They talking quietly and urgently before Sai Lin turned and looked at Aang. The men parted in front of him to let the newcomer through.

"Let's see the damage, then."

Aang raised his head higher and squinted in the flickering light. "You. I know you."

"Oh my," Bokku said, a faint smile on his face. "It looks like someone needs a healer."


	9. A Brief Interlude on Drugs and Poisons

**Chapter 9: A Brief Interlude on Drugs and Poisons**

Lieutenant Sho Qin of the Fire Nation's imperial army was not feeling so great. He lay balled up on the floor of his dingy cell and tried not to shiver. At the moment he was feeling terribly cold but his temperature swung frequently. His muscles twitched and he felt bone tired. He didn't know how long he had been kept in his cell; tracking time had become difficult. There were no windows he could look out, no shadows he could watch. The only frequent things were his meals and his treatments.

That was Bokku the healer called them; _treatments_. They felt more like torture than anything. It had been a surprise at first to find out that Bokku was a Waterbender. But the novelty soon wore off when Bokku began to bend and Push strange liquids into Sho's body. The young lieutenant felt them course through his blood and make his muscles cramp and his bowels loosen. Bokku's sessions never lasted very long but they left Sho feeling like he'd been beaten and wrung out.

The worst part was that he didn't know why Bokku was doing this. The man never seemed pleased or upset with any of his sessions. There were no questions, no demands, nothing that made any sense. After the session was over Bokku would just wash his hands and leave. It was like the man was waiting for something, for Sho to finally snap maybe and beg for mercy, or maybe have Sho declare he was loyal to the colonies. Whatever Bokku was waiting for, he hadn't found it yet. As Sho lay balled up on the floor, he grimly wished that Bokku never would and would just kill him already.

* * *

In another cell, not far from Sho's own, General Khan was facing a different dilemma. His poisoning from Janai's Salvation had been surprisingly brief. Bokku, Yamamachi's physician, had rid him quickly of the poison. It seemed Khan's poisoning had only been a means to incapacitate him while Bokku and his accomplices captured the Avatar. Khan was just beginning to realise how many accomplices Bokku had. It seemed the majority of the Governor's staff was part of this elaborate plan to capture the Avatar. What they planned to do with Aang, Khan hadn't yet figured out. Currently he had..._other _problems.

When Bokku healed Khan from Janai's Salvation it was only to inflict him with another different poison.

"Make no mistake, General," Bokku had said, "I don't want you dead. But keeping you alive could be troublesome. A man like you surely understands the need to take certain preventative measures?"

Khan certainly did understand. He had no hard feelings, then, when Bokku gave him a drug which removed his bending; none whatsoever.

Of course, he still planned to kill the Waterbender.

His main obstacle to that plan was his lack of bending. He had been stuck in his cell for what had to be days, without any contact. During all this time Khan had felt no inkling of his bending returning. No drug could have affects that lasted so long after only one administration. Khan assumed then that he was still being drugged somehow. Since he had no human contact, there had to be some way that Bokku was giving it to him.

The most obvious option was Khan's meals. They came regularly through a slot in his door. The food and his privy bucket were the only things that came through his door. Khan eyed the food in front of him with a critical eye. It was only soup and bland at that. He couldn't taste anything suspicious in his meal. But unless Bokku was coming while he slept and shoving the drug up his rear then it had to be in his soup. Khan frowned and considered his options.

He could refuse his meals and send them back through the slot untouched. If he did that Khan didn't doubt that Bokku would then send guards in and force the drug down his throat. That was, if Bokku didn't just kill him. He could throw his meal out into his privy bucket or throw it up, but if Bokku was half as clever as Khan thought him to be he'd check that too, to make sure that Khan was eating. Khan shook his head; no, he needed a way to make it look like he'd eaten and yet not take in the drug.

He glanced around his cell, trying to find some kind of inspiration. Bokku and his thugs had been so confident in their control of him that they'd placed in a cell made of brick. Khan felt a swell of anger at their arrogance. At least when he'd been a prisoner of the Fire Nation his guards had been respectful enough to place him in a prison of metal. Khan cocked his head as something on the bricks caught his eye. He shuffled closer and put his face nearer to the wall. There was mould growing on the bricks; _thick_ mould.

An idea began to form in Khan's head. What if he flushed out Bokku's poison with another poison? If he dirtied his food with mould, he could still eat it and have it pass out before his body had time to absorb the poison. Food poisoning and sickness of the bowels was an ailment Khan had seen many times in many poor and ravaged villages during the war. It was a wasting sickness; you could eat and drink but if your food and water was dirty then you would gain no benefit from it. If Khan made himself sick then Bokku's drug would eventually leave his body.

It was a dangerous option. Bowel sickness would leave him terribly weak, perhaps completely incapable of fighting. But what choice did he have? Better to be sick and a bender than be hale and useless. Khan began to pick the mould off the wall and drop it into his soup. Bowel sickness would be messy and hardly dignified but Khan didn't care. The end would always justify the means.


	10. Escape

**Chapter 10: Escape**

_This is it_, Sho thought, _this is the day Bokku kills me_. The Waterbender had him strung up and stripped bare. Sho sweated and clenched his jaw to keep from crying out. Today's session with Bokku was the worst yet. His body felt like the skin on a tightly taut drum and his heart hammered to its beat. Whatever Bokku was doing to him it was tearing Sho apart. His muscles ripped at their seams, his bones creaked and his blood boiled. And even deeper in him, Sho felt fundamental changes to his body.

Sho was dying. Bokku, pushing his strange poisons into him, had reached Sho's core and was killing him from the inside out. Sho could no longer hold it in. He screamed and pulled at his chains till he felt the metal cut into his flesh. But that pain was nothing to what he felt inside of him. _I'm sorry mother, father. I'm a weak and useless son_. His pain reached its crescendo and rose higher still. If it went any higher he would break. He would die.

And he_ was _breaking.

He was-.

The pain disappeared; gone, like a flame blown out. Sho blinked, grimaced as sweat stung his eyes and blinked again. His body ached but it felt different somehow. It was a familiar ache, like exhaustion or over-exertion. Sho didn't understand; he should have been dead. He looked at Bokku.

The Waterbender was smiling. He had dark rings under his eyes and was perspiring badly, but his smile looked...satisfied? Achieved? It was hard to say.

One of Bokku's lackeys handed him a towel and the physician wiped his face. As he passed the towel back he took a moment to send a gloating look Sho's way.

"You'll be happy to know, Lieutenant, that this was our last session together," Bokku said.

Sho found his voice. "You're killing me?"

Bokku's laughter seemed genuinely amused. "_Kill_ you? After all that hard work? I don't think so."

The Waterbender began to pack his things. Sho stirred and rattled his chains. "What, then? What happens now? What did you do to me?"

Bokku opened the cell door.

"Bokku!" Sho yelled hoarsely, "What did you do to me!"

The door thudded heavily as the healer left.

Sho wanted to scream in frustration. He had had enough of this, enough of being left in the dark. He _hated_ that smile on Bokku's face; it was pure smug satisfaction. Sho wanted to punch it off of him. What had these "sessions" been about if not to break him?

The two men that had been guarding the healer now approached Sho. One took a set of keys off his belt and began to unlock Sho's fetters. Sho's fists clenched and his breathing quickened. He was angry and tired. He was a lieutenant of the Imperial Fire Nation, a soldier and fighter, and by Agni he wasn't going to be used as someone's plaything anymore. He couldn't bend more than a tongue of flame - the sessions with Bokku had robbed him of much of his strength - but he didn't care. He would escape or he would die trying.

The lock on his chains clicked and before the guard could step away Sho's hands darted out. He grabbed the man's shirt, yanked him forward and head-butted him. The guard reeled backward and fell. Sho turned to the other guard but exhaustion made him slow. The other guard socked him one in the jaw. Sho stumbled on weak legs before another fist connected again to his face. He thumped to the floor. His head came up in time to see the guard pull back his leg for a kick. _Well_, Sho thought, _that's it then_.

The cell wall exploded. Dust clogged the air and rubble pelted Sho and the guard. The latter turned to the now collapsed wall, coughing into his hand.

"What was-?"

A jutting spire of rock erupted from the floor and took off the man's head. Sho watched dumbstruck as the body staggered backwards for a few seconds before it collapsed to the ground. Blood and jagged flesh decorated the floor and remaining walls. Sho touched his face with a shaky hand. His cheeks were wet with second-hand blood. He swallowed and turned to the destroyed wall. The dust began to settle and he could make out the figure standing at the threshold.

Khan still had one arm extended, his fist visibly trembling. His robe hung stiffly with dirt and grime. He looked thin and pale, his cheeks hollow and his eyes were positively cavernous. He looked like death warmed up. He looked terrifying.

Khan latched those hard eyes on sho and relaxed his extension. "I thought this was the right room," he said finally. "A lucky thing you scream so loudly lieutenant. It made finding you that much easier."

Sho felt his cheeks heat up but held his tongue. He didn't think he was capable of finding a comeback at that moment.

Khan raised an eyebrow. "Are you coming?"

The lieutenant sprang to his feet and stepped gingerly over the blood and rubble. As he drew closer to the General he noticed the older man was still shaking.

"Are you alright?" Sho asked. "You look horrible."

Khan laughed bitterly. "You look about the same."

Sho grimaced at thoughts of what Bokku did to him. "How did you escape?"

Khan's smile was vicious. "Trust me, Lieutenant; you wouldn't want to know."

Shouts echoed down the hewn stone corridors. Khan turned his head to the sound. "Enough talk. Let's get out of here."

They didn't run as so much as hobble down the passages. The way was lit with lurid green lanterns and fitfully smoking torches. They passed doors and intersections but Khan didn't slow to inspect any of them.

"How do you know where we're going?" Sho asked.

Khan stopped, inhaled sharply and hit his fist against the wall. He closed his eyes in concentration. The sound of running feet echoed nearby.

"Khan?" Sho asked insistently.

"Shh!" the General muttered. The feet sounded closer. Finally Khan opened his eyes. "This way," he said and took off again.

"But how do you know?" Sho asked.

"The vibrations," Khan answered curtly. "We're in some kind of tunnel system."

They moved along as quickly as either of them could, stopping every now and then so Khan could check the way. They finally arrived at a steel door.

"Beyond this the vibrations open up and out," Khan said heavily. He was breathing hard and looked unsteady on his feet. "That should be our exit."

"Is there anyone inside?" Sho asked.

Khan nodded; his face grim. Sho exhaled, steeled himself and took hold of the door handle.

"Go," Khan said.

Sho pushed the door open and immediately peppered the room with fire; hoping surprise would be enough to counter his bending. There were five men in the room sitting at a table. One of Sho's tiny jets of flame caught onto the sleeve of one of the men. He jumped up out of his chair and started squatting at his clothes. Sho ignored him and made for the others. His chi had emptied with his first surprise attack, effectively neutering his bending. But that didn't stop him. Sho swung his fist at one man, knocking him into the back of another. The two tangled into each other before a hurtling rock knocked them both out. Sho turned to Khan and nodded thanks. Khan, hunched over, smiled back.

A moustached man swung his leg out and knocked the General off his feet. Sho made to help him when he felt a sharp pain arc up his back. He staggered forward, pressing a hand to his wound. Blood began to seep under his fingers. He turned and a thin man stood before him wielding a long, bloody knife. The man lunged ungainly at him. Sho picked up on the poor form, grabbed the man's knife arm and twisted the weapon into his own hands. He stabbed the man with a quick thrust to the throat. The thin man fell to the floor as Sho turned to help Khan.

General Khan sagged against the wall, his opponent lay face down across the table. The man Sho had first burned was nowhere to be seen.

"Khan!" Sho ran and crouched beside him. "Khan, are you okay?"

Khan's eyes fluttered open. "I'm fine dammit. Just need..." and he drifted off again.

"Khan!" Sho shook the man but he didn't come to again.

He heard the distant shouts of alarm; closer still were the sounds of running feet. Sho could feel his own strength fade now that the fight was over. Draining his reserves still was the wound in his back. But he couldn't stop, not now that they were so close to escape.

Sho positioned Khan's arm over his shoulder and, with the last of his strength, hoisted him up. He staggered and almost collapsed under the General's weight, but at the last minute held on. Together, Sho dragged himself and Khan toward the far door.

When Sho reached it he almost screamed in dismay. It was a thick slab of rock, no lock, no handle. The only way to open it was Earthbending.

"Khan." It was even a struggle to speak. "Khan, you need to open the door."

Khan was still.

"Khan, please, the door."

Again, no response. Sho could hear the running feet come closer. They were loud enough for him to start to make our voices.

"General, open this door!" he yelled. Sho pushed his shoulder against the slab of rock. His body shook under the weight of the older man, his feet wavering and slipping. But he had to keep going.

"Open, damn you," Sho cursed, pushing with all his might against the door, "open! _Open_!"

Sho felt something _shift_.

The door grated open. He almost fell over when it suddenly slid away from him. Sho looked down at Khan, blinking in surprise. The General seemed as motionless as ever. Sho shook his head and didn't push the thought further. The door was open and that was enough for him.

The way ahead was an inclining tunnel. There were no torches here, but there was a dim light further up and Sho made his way toward that. As he began to walk up and out relief washed over him. This was his escape; once he got to that light he would be free.

But that relief died away as he exited the tunnel. It was night and Sho blinked at the unfamiliar lights of the town beneath him. He turned behind and stared. The tunnel was cleverly hidden on the side of a hill, one of many skirting the fringes of a huge mountain. Even in the dark its cloud-wreathed shape was familiar. Kawayama. At the base of the mountain, framed in torchlight, Sho could see the underpass. And beyond that he knew lay Yamamachi.

He began to panic. They were still so close to the enemy, an enemy that nested under an _entire mountain_. He had to get away. He still had to escape.

With Khan on his shoulder, Sho turned back to the town and began to make his way down the hill. The hill was dotted with clumps of grass amidst gravel and scree. The stones cut his bare feet making his footing even more slippery. He went inch by inch down the hill. But it wouldn't be enough. The scree finally slipped him up and he lost his footing all together. Sho lost Khan as he tumbled and rolled down the hill. A hard stone cracked against his back and his arm smacked into another. At last his terrifying ride was finished. But so was he.

Bruised, battered and bleeding Sho no longer had the strength to stand, let alone walk again. _This is really it_, he thought, _I'm dead_. Strangely he felt no shame at his realisation. He had tried his best; better still than what he thought himself capable. There was no dishonour in a death like that.

The sound of turning wheels caught in his ears. He raised his head with more effort than he had ever expelled during the night. His tumble down the mountain had left him skirting the road. There was a wagon coming from the mountain. It was slowing. The rider jumped down from it and, carrying a torch, ran over to Sho. Sho's energy left him and he dropped his head. He heard the rider gasp.

"By all the spirits...! How did you...?"

The voice was familiar.

There was silence for a few seconds as the rider seem to make up their mind. And then hands wrapped around Sho and he was being dragged. He groaned in pain.

"Quiet," the rider said in a hushed voice. "Not a word."

And then Sho was lifted into what had to be the wagon bed. A sheet was thrown over him. There was silence again as the rider went away. Sho lay still, not quite knowing what to expect. Was he saved? Why was the rider's voice so familiar? The wagon bed heaved again and the rider grunted with effort. There was the sound of another blanket being thrown.

"Now quiet," the rider said. "Both of you."

"Hey!" a voice called further away. "Hey!"

"Oh no..." Sho heard the rider mutter.

"Sai Lin!" the voice called.

Sho stiffened. He could not breathe. Sai Lin.

"What's wrong, Sai Lin?" the voice - a man - asked.

"Nothing, Techi," Sai Lin said confidently. "Just one of the ostrichorses got spooked and I dropped a bit of my load." Her hand patted down on Sho. "All good now."

"Ah, I see," Techi said. "I'll let you get to it then."

"Thank you, Techi," Sai Lin replied.

Footsteps grounded down the road as the watchman, Techi, left. Sai Lin's hand still rested on Sho.

"Do not make me regret this," she said finally, in a low voice.

She left and the wagon started rolling again. Sho still had trouble breathing. Sai Lin had helped them. Sai Lin had _saved_ them. The world had just turned on its head and danced a jig. The world was _mad_.


	11. Hearts and Minds

**A/N: To avoid confusion, readers should know that this chapter takes place during the same time as _Chapter 9:_ _A Brief Interlude on Drugs and Poisons_.  
**

**Chapter 11: Hearts and Minds**

Aang woke and immediately regretted it. He didn't think there was a part of his body that wasn't sore. He was lying flat on his back, a slimy stone ceiling his only view. He turned his head and saw more stone walls and a rough, wooden door. He looked down at himself and groaned. His shirt was missing, revealing a tapestry of bruises; truly a work of art. His hands – the blue arrows now matching nicely with his bruises – worked their way down his ribcage. There were no broken ribs, which surprised him. He had expected at least two.

Sitting up perhaps took more effort than it was worth. The first attempt ended in tears. The second and the third went much the same way. It was finally on his fourth attempt that Aang managed to heave himself upright, using the stone as a support. He panted and sweated like he'd just endured a training session with Toph but he felt proud of his accomplishment. Now, at least, he could face his enemies sitting upright.

Aang raised an arm and Pushed to Airbend. Nothing happened. He sighed; either he was too weak to bend or whatever Sai Lin had given him was still in effect. He went to scratch his head and started. His scalp was covered in short fuzz. Gingerly he touched his face and felt the prickly beginnings of a beard. How long had he been unconscious? Judging by the growth on his face he guessed four days.

He wondered how the others were; how Appa was. He wanted to smack his head in frustration but thought better of it. Why did he go up the mountain alone? Why didn't he just listen to Khan and Sho? Stupid, stupid, stupid.

The sound of a lock turning made him look up. The door opened and Bokku the healer walked in. He stopped when he saw Aang.

"Avatar," he said with genuine surprise, "you're awake. That's excellent."

Aang thought about jumping him but after the effort it took to sit up he didn't bother. No need to fall on his face and make an even bigger fool of himself.

"We started to get worried when you hadn't woken on the third day," Bokku continued, pulling up a stool and sitting in front of Aang; "Thought perhaps we overdid it. Though, I guess you can't be too careful when it comes to catching the Avatar. Tonshi will be happy to know that you're alright."

Aang stared at him. Bokku acted like they had both sat down for tea. "You didn't seem too concerned with my health when you had your men beat me unconscious."

Bokku smiled. "Like I said, can't be too careful."

"Where are Sho and Khan?" Aang demanded. "What did you do with them?"

"The others?" Bokku shrugged. "They're well enough, I suppose."

Aang glared at him. The man's casualness was starting to get on his nerves. Bokku looked at him and cocked his head.

"I've upset you," he said. "Understandable. You're confused; you've no idea why I brought you to Yamamachi."

"_You_ brought me Yamamachi?" Aang repeated. He paused in thought then his face hardened. "You killed Faizin. You killed him so that I would come."

Bokku nodded.

Anger clouded Aang's mind and bile came up in his mouth. It was only through great self-control that he stopped himself from lunging at Bokku. The very idea that someone would kill just to get to him…Aang had never felt so angry in his life.

"Why would you do that?" Aang asked through clenched teeth. "_How_ could you do that?"

Bokku shrugged. "We needed a legitimate reason for you to come. _And_ for you to stay. Killing Faizin was the easiest way."

Aang ground his teeth and felt his fists tighten and shake.

Bokku sighed. "If it makes you feel any better it wasn't a popular or easy decision. Faizin was a good man."

"So everyone tells me," Aang replied stiffly. "I hope you're happy, Bokku. You got my attention now. Though I think by the end you'll regret it."

Bokku smiled. "I doubt that, Avatar. You are worth every drop of blood, sweat and tears."

He stood suddenly. "Tomorrow I'll show you what I brought you here for, and what you'll help me with. In the meantime I'll have some food sent up for you." He bowed. "A pleasure, Avatar."

When the door shut Aang took a moment to gather his calm again. It took a long time. He had to keep his mind away from the conversation; every time his thoughts drifted to it he became furious all over again. That someone would commit murder to get his attention…murder was abhorrent to begin with but this was something else.

After some time the cell door opened again. Sai Lin walked through with a tray of food. Aang observed her openly. At first glance she seemed her usual formal self but on further observation it was clear her movements weren't just stiff, they were wooden.

"Hello, Sai Lin," he said quietly.

She went still for a moment before continuing to set the food before him.

"Avatar," she responded just as quietly. Her eyes never met his.

He watched her set out the food. It was humble affair but that didn't bother him. He wasn't hungry besides. He saw how her fingers trembled as she poured the tea, how the chopsticks clattered jarringly against the bowl. How hot water splashed onto her hand and how she didn't flinch.

"Thank you, Sai Lin," he said.

"Do you require anything else, Avatar?"

His smile was wry. "Other than your company?"

Sai Lin's eyes shot up to his. There was distress hidden in them. Her lips trembled. "Avatar…I…I…" Her eyes dropped.

"I forgive you, Sai Lin," Aang said softly.

Her eyes came up again, angrily this time. "I did nothing wrong."

Aang only arched an eyebrow. Sai Lin stood and left quickly.

Aang sighed and leaned his head against the wall. He watched steam rise from his food and condense onto the low ceiling. His body ached all over. His mind felt too tired to think straight so he let it drift and wander. His thoughts turned, as they did of late, to Katara.

* * *

Sai Lin hurried down the subterranean passageways, avoiding eye contact and responding to greetings only superficially. Her thoughts raced in her head but she avoided those as well. Sho did not want to think at all just then. She wanted out of this damned mountain and to be in the fresh air. She wanted a hot bath and then to sleep, nothing else. A door opened to her left and a man stepped out.

"Sai Lin," he called.

She jarred to a stop, turned and gave a quick perfunctory bow to Tonshi. As her head came up she caught a glimpse of the room beyond. Her heart stammered a little. Bokku stood before a stripped and strung up Lieutenant Sho. The healer was working his elixirs on the Fire Nation man. Sai Lin watched Sho's face writhe in pain before the door shut. She quickly focused her eyes onto Tonshi but something struck her about what she had just seen. She didn't understand why seeing Sho cut at her.

"I heard you saw Avatar Aang," Tonshi said, his expression shrewd. "He didn't get to you did he? He thinks you're a friend and I was worried..."

Sai Lin felt her back get up and she glared at him. "You think I'd fall for him?" she snapped. "Save your concern for someone who needs it."

Tonshi's eyes widened, first in surprise and then in outrage. "That's Governor Tonshi to you, girl. Know your place!"

Sai Lin scoffed at him. "_Please_. You are not even half the man Faizin was."

"Faizin is dead!" Tonshi sputtered.

"I know," Sai Lin replied sharply. "I was there, remember?" She cocked her head. "Though, come to think of it...where were you?"

Tonshi's face continued to go red but a lot of his bluster left him. "Just make sure you remember where your loyalties lie. We're doing this for our people. Nothing gets in the way of that."

She huffed at him. "Get out of my way."

Sai Lin pushed past him and continued down the corridor. She didn't need reminding of her duty to her people, especially from a coward like Tonshi. She loved them and would do anything for them; had done so, in fact. No, she certainly didn't need reminding.

Then why could she not get the Avatar's look of disappointment out of her head? Why would seeing Sho in pain trouble her so much?

She shook her head. It didn't matter. What was done was done and she had no regrets. She _couldn't_ have regrets, not now, not when they were so close to their end game. She would go home, she would have a bath and she would go to bed. And she would no longer think on the Avatar or the Lieutenant. She wouldn't.

* * *

Aang sat cross-legged on the ground. He didn't look at the man who sat to his right. He couldn't.

"I'm sorry, Jet."

The other man laughed a little.

"Don't sweat it, Aang," and he put a friendly hand on his shoulder.

Aang turned to him, his heart heavy with grief. But it was no longer Jet who sat next to him.

Faizin smiled at him. "I don't blame you."

Aang's eyes flew open. The mouldy ceiling stared back at him. _A dream_. He scrubbed wearily at his face and was surprised to feel they were wet with tears. He sighed. _Not a happy one, either_.

The door to his cell opened. Aang sighed again as Bokku and two other men walked in. The healer spotted the untouched tray of food and frowned.

"You didn't eat," he said. "I'm disappointed."

Aang shrugged. "I wasn't hungry."

Bokku gave a resigned sigh. "I'm sorry, Avatar. I didn't want to do this."

He gave a quick gesture with his hand and the two men moved toward Aang. Aang eyed them curiously. He still felt too weak to do much resisting so he let them grab his arms and hoist him up. Bokku approached, then, with a small bottle. He uncorked it.

"You are going to drink this," he said.

Aang smiled weakly. "If you say so."

Bokku eyed him cautiously but Aang opened his mouth without protest. The liquid Bokku poured in had no taste and went down easily enough. The healer stepped away and Aang smacked his lips, trying to feel the effects of the poison. He didn't feel any different.

"What does it do?" he asked.

Bokku smiled, obviously happy to have someone interested in his work. "It's a blend of my own. It inhibits bending; discovered it when I was looking for a numbing agent for patients."

"Interesting," Aang replied. He gave Bokku a savage grin. "But you're going to need more than that to stop me."

Bokku blinked. His face hardened. "We'll see how confident you are after today."

He walked out of the room and the guards hoisted Aang to his feet and hurried him along after him. Aang's legs were quite unsteady so the guards had to fairly carry him.

Aang inspected his peculiar surroundings. They were underground somewhere; he could feel the weight of the earth above him. The air was cold but, surprisingly, not stale. The corridors were narrow and obviously made with Earthbending; the hard, geometrical lines declared that fact. There were no signs or indicators as to where they were going; Aang wondered how people managed to traverse these tunnels without getting lost. And there were quite a few people walking along the corridors. Aang couldn't believe the numbers; that so many were in on this plot to capture him.

They walked for a long time, taking corners seemingly at random. Aang inevitably lost his sense of direction. Finally they stopped and entered through a steel door. Aang's eyes widened. The room was large and filled with young men and women, lined up in rows. They stood to attention and the sound of a hundred feet coming together echoed in the chamber.

Tonshi appeared from the group and approached Aang with a proud smile. "Avatar, how do you like our army?"

Aang stepped away from his two guards and tottered up to one of the soldiers, a young man. He had hard, green eyes that didn't blink under Aang's scrutiny. Aang turned his head to Tonshi.

"They make me sad," he answered.

Tonshi's face was puzzled by the Avatar's reply. Bokku spoke up quickly and with excitement, covering over the Governor's confusion.

"You haven't seen them in action yet."

Aang stepped back from the young man. "I doubt my opinion will change."

Bokku smiled. "We'll see. Since you took such an interest in him, perhaps Bo will provide you a demonstration."

The green-eyed man nodded curtly and the men and women around him stepped away to give him space. Aang watched Bo stand in the centre and take the horse stance.

Bo took a breath, held it, then stamped his right foot and pushed his fisted arms upward. Aang was unsurprised to see a small rock pillar rise from the ground. It was a basic move, a first level technique and nothing more. But then Bo inhaled sharply again and shifted his feet. His left foot turned out and his right came up and out in a straight kick. Fire flared from his foot in a quick, hot burst. Bo's foot came down and he turned to Tonshi, Bokku and Aang and bowed.

Tonshi clapped enthusiastically and turned to Aang with a wide grin. "Impressive, wouldn't you say, Avatar?"

Aang frowned at the army. "Not exactly the word I would use, Tonshi."

The Governor's face flushed in indignation. "Don't pretend like you don't care, Avatar. These benders will win us the respect of the world."

Aang turned hard eyes on him and the thin man flinched. "I do care, Tonshi. I care very much about what you've done. I told you before that I wouldn't let you upset the balance of the world and I meant it."

His hand gestured sharply to the assembled men and women.

"_This_," he said, his voice thick with disgust, "is an abomination, a slap in the face of the natural laws of our world, and believe me, Tonshi, when I say I won't stop until each and everyone of your _creatures_ is removed from it."

Aang's words echoed through the silent chamber and his body shook with the intensity of them. He hadn't meant to be so vehement but Tonshi's blindness to the gravity of what he had done had made Aang furious. Tonshi's face had blanched, his previous in indignation nowhere to be seen. His army twitched and shifted on their feet. No doubt they didn't appreciate being called 'abominations', especially from someone like the Avatar.

Bokku put a hand on Aang's shoulder and he recoiled at the healer's touch. Bokku grimaced. "Avatar, please, let us talk."

Aang eyed him suspiciously but finally nodded assent. With a lightly guiding hand Bokku led him away to a room offside.

Their new surroundings were simply furnished, with a simple chair and desk, lots of lamplight and piles of scrolls, books and thick, heavy tomes. A writing set sat neatly on the desk. Aang spotted diagrams and drawings and realised that this must be Bokku's study. He understood the pictures of the human body and some of plants but others were beyond him. What did the pictures of strange webbings and patterns mean? Why was Bokku fascinated with ladders and boxes?

"I'm sorry," Bokku said, clearing away for Aang to sit in the chair, "I don't usually have people come into this room."

Aang sat stiffly and said nothing. Bokku found a large stack of books and squatted on them. He folded his hands and smiled reassuringly at Aang.

"I suppose," he said, "you want to know how I made the dual benders?"

Aang remained silent. Bokku sighed and continued anyway.

"During the war," he began, "I did many things in the service of the Northern Water Tribe; things which you'd likely not approve of. I was researching into bending and its origins, specifically what separates a bender from a non-bender."

Aang stirred. "A person's spirit."

Bokku nodded. "Quite so. My efforts to make benders from those who were not were…" he finished his sentence with a shrug. "By the time I came to the same conclusion as you the war had ended. People of my previous occupation were no longer needed. Or wanted."

He sighed and shifted on his chair. "I found something else to do. I went to the colonies as a physician; been here for three years now."

"And how did you come to make them an army?" Aang asked quietly.

Bokku smiled a little. "_They_ came to _me_. Somehow they had found out about my previous work and thought that I could make them an army of benders out of them all."

He gave a short laugh. "They were wrong, of course, but I wasn't going to turn down an opportunity to continue my research again _and_ with willing volunteers, might I add. Besides, this time I was at an advantage. I knew that I couldn't make benders out of non-benders, but what about those who were already benders? The spirit was in them to bend so what prevented them from the other elements then?

"I couldn't have progressed in this new research in the Water Tribe or even the Earth Kingdom. The Fire Nation colonies were uniquely suited for my studies. You see, the colonists' histories, their bloodlines, are so mixed between the Fire Nation and the Earth Kingdom that one can no longer tell which nation they belong to. And it's only with this mixed heritage that I can unlock in colonist benders the ability to bend more than one element."

"You're perverting nature," Aang retorted.

Bokku shook his head. "The potential to bend two elements has been with the colonists for decades. I predict that, given enough time, they would've eventually been capable of bending fire and earth on their own. There is nothing wrong with my speeding up the process of natural progression."

"Of course there's something wrong with it," Aang countered. "Even if what you say is true, about the colonists eventually becoming dual benders, then it would have happened in its proper place in time. _Now _is _not_ the right time. The world isn't ready for a whole new group of benders to just…appear!"

"The world has progressed far more than you think, Avatar. You are only refusing to see it because it doesn't fit in with your way of thinking." Bokku cocked his head. "Are you sure that some part of you still isn't trapped in that iceberg?"

Aang stood quickly, ignoring his vertigo in his anger, but Bokku was unmoved by the gesture and continued.

"I don't care if you agree with me or not, Avatar," Bokku said. "I would like your consent but I don't need it. The world is moving forward, yes, but I can make it go so much faster. You and I, we are going to change the shape of it, together."

Something in his eyes frightened Aang. "I don't understand."

"Don't you see," Bokku said fervently. "You are the only one in the world who can bend all the elements. But what if everyone could do that? What if every bender was like you, Avatar?"

Aang shook his head. "I thought you were just building an army for the colonists."

Bokku's smile disturbed Aang. "Oh, I am. But this breakthrough in my research has inspired me. Avatar, I envision a world where no bender is lesser than another, where we will all be equals in our ability."

Aang couldn't quite believe what he was hearing. He couldn't reply to Bokku, his speech leaving him. The healer continued anyway.

"Can you imagine it?" he said with a shine in his eyes. "It will be a paradise. And you, Avatar, will help me achieve it."

"Bokku," Aang said carefully, "think about what you're saying. You haven't thought this through."

But Bokku didn't hear him. "Once I unlock the secrets of the Avatar spirit I will be able to make everyone just like you."

He smiled and Aang went cold.

"Wouldn't that be something?"

* * *

Sai Lin carried the tray of food carefully and tried to look calm when she walked into the Avatar's cell. In actual fact, she was anything but that. Yesterday's plans to soak in a bath and forget all about the Avatar and his disappointed face had ended badly. Not only didn't she enjoy her bath but she couldn't sleep that night either. The result had left in a sour mood and she didn't enjoy the prospect of more time spent with the Avatar.

The Avatar was seated on the ground and didn't look up as she entered. He paid no attention to her as Sai Lin placed the tray down and arranged the bowls carefully. She almost breathed a sigh of relief as she stood up to walk away. Then the Avatar suddenly called to her.

"Sai Lin?"

She stiffened, felt her stomach drop, but turned and bowed to him dutifully. The muscles in her stomach clenched when she saw the troubled look in his eyes but then she realised that it wasn't directed at her, rather it seemed…introspective.

"Do you think that I'm out of touch with the world?" he asked quietly.

The question caught her by surprise. Why was he asking her this?

"No," she said cautiously. "You're the Avatar. You are naturally in tune with the balance of the world."

He smiled a little. "That's not what you really think."

Sai Lin frowned at him. "No."

The Avatar gave a little huff. "You remind me of someone, you know."

She quirked an eyebrow. "An enemy?"

He turned to her, shocked.

"No," he said quickly. "A friend."

His look became inward once more. Sai Lin watched him for a moment and sighed. She came and sat beside him. "This friend, what was she like?"

"_He_," the Avatar replied with a smile. "He had a good heart. He was very brave."

"Was?" she asked.

He nodded. "He's dead now."

Sai Lin gave him a look. She reminded him of someone dead? How was she supposed to take that?

"You would've liked him," the Avatar continued. "He was a freedom fighter, too."

Sai Lin wasn't sure she liked where this was going but curiosity got the better of her. "What happened to him?"

The Avatar took a moment to reply, his eyes clouded in memory. "He forgot what he was fighting for and lost sight of what separated him from his enemies."

"You think that's what's happened to me?" Sai Lin asked, an edge in her tone.

"His actions almost killed his people. As it was he destroyed the town." The Avatar's look was telling.

"I haven't destroyed my people," Sai Lin insisted.

"Haven't you?" the Avatar asked. "I'm not so out of touch as you think. You kidnapped the Avatar. I know what the world will think of that."

"We need to be taken seriously," Sai Lin protested but the Avatar was already shaking his head.

"I get it that you want respect but this was the wrong way to go about it. The other nations won't take you as a potential new country but as a threat to their peace."

"We have the dual-bending army," Sai Lin countered.

"The army Bokku made you?" The Avatar's face said exactly what he thought of that. "That's a dangerous path to take, Sai Lin; maybe worse than kidnapping me. Do you have any idea what Bokku plans to do with me?"

"You'll help him make more benders," Sai Lin said.

"No, Sai Lin," the Avatar said urgently, "he's going to kill me."

Sai Lin blinked. "What?"

The Avatar nodded solemnly.

Sai Lin shook her head. "No, I don't believe it. We all agreed that it wouldn't come to that. You must have misunderstood."

"I haven't misunderstood anything," the Avatar said flatly. "Bokku is going to try and mess with the Avatar spirit. That's something that no one should be poking at. At best he'll only kill me. At worst…"

The Avatar grimaced and Sai Lin didn't need to know anymore. No, she didn't _want_ to know anymore. It was not supposed to be like this. She was not supposed to feel sorry for the Avatar, let alone doubt the morality of her cause. She stood up quickly and began to leave.

"Sai Lin!" the Avatar called.

She kept walking.

"Sai Lin, please!"

She hesitated with her hand on the door. This was all so wrong. Anger flooded her and she spun furiously back to the Avatar.

"What?" she spat. "What do you want?"

The Avatar's eyes were painful to look at. "Help me, Sai Lin."

She hated the pleading in his eyes. "I won't betray my people."

"I'm not asking you to," the Avatar responded gently.

"Then what am I supposed to do?" Sai Lin was practically begging herself.

"Get me out of here."

"I can't."

"Sai Lin," the Avatar said seriously, "you can't let Bokku get his hands on me."

"I _can't _get you out of here," Sai Lin said, her voice almost pained. "I _can't_ betray my people like that."

"Sai Lin, not getting me out would be a bigger betrayal, to the whole world." The Avatar leaned forward, his entire body pleading. "Sai Lin, I promise you, if you get me out I will do everything in my power to help your people. _Please_."

Sai Lin was quiet, her troubled eyes weighing the man in front of her. "…You promise?"

He smiled gently. "Avatar's oath."

Sai Lin stared at him. Her mouth opened but the words were shut up in her throat. She couldn't breathe. It was _not_ supposed to be like _this_.

"I…_I can't_."

And she opened the door and left.

* * *

Aang sighed and leaned back against the wall. He couldn't blame Sai Lin, not really. Her prejudice and mistrust of anyone in authority had to be deeply ingrained. But he couldn't say that he wasn't…disappointed in her decision.

He wouldn't give up, though. He couldn't. Bokku's plan to meddle with the Avatar spirit would only end in disaster. If the world lost the Avatar again, so soon after the war…

He shook his head. He wasn't going to let that happen. He was going to fight Bokku by any way that he could.

An enormous yawn passed from him. He gave a weak smile. The fighting would come, but for now he would sleep. He lay his head down and drifted off immediately. This time when he dreamed, it was only of Katara.

* * *

"Aang?"

Katara woke from her sleep, surprised by the words that directly came out of her mouth. Really, she shouldn't have been, not with the dream she just had. She smiled ruefully and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. Dreaming of Aang. _Honestly_. She knew she missed him but dreaming of him? _That_ was a bit much. She pushed off her blankets and Pulled water from the jar and into the wash bowl.

A thought came to her and she paused whilst washing her face. Her dream was rather odd. The images were so vivid that they still hadn't faded from her mind. She dried her face slowly. Did it mean something?

She dressed with deliberate care. Aang was off investigating that murder. She hadn't heard from him in weeks. He usually managed to get a messenger hawk out to her by now…

She fastened her water pouch. Perhaps the hawk just hadn't reached her yet. Or got caught in a storm. Or…something.

Katara brushed at her hair slower and slower until her hand finally stopped. Maybe he was in trouble. It was just a dream; was she looking too much into it? Probably; likely she was just missing him that was all.

But…

Katara put the brush down. She sat very still on her stool for a long time. Finally she stood and began to pack. Maybe Aang was in trouble or maybe he wasn't. She would go to him anyway. Without Appa it would take her a while but her brother could lend her his eelhound. She smiled to herself then. Aang was probably fine but it would be great to see him again. What a surprise he would get!


	12. An Eventful Evening

**Chapter 12: An Eventful Evening**

Sho felt sweat run down his brow and tried not to breathe. The stink of ostrichorse and manure was heavy in the already thick, humid air. Hay poked him in uncomfortable places and made his nose itch. The wound in his back throbbed in time with his heartbeat. The ache in his head pounded and demanded attention. But Sho was a soldier and discipline held him still.

"Ah, I see," Sai Lin said to the old woman. She hefted the jar in her hands. "Thank you for the honey, Oba."

From his hiding place, Sho watched the old woman give a gummy smile. "It is nothing, Little Sai. Old Oji got lucky when he found that hive and I wanted to share our blessings."

Sho held in a frustrated sigh. This was the fifth time the old woman was telling her story. Sai Lin gave a pleasant smile, however.

"Yes, Oba," she said. "Thank you."

"You should find yourself a man, Little Sai," the old woman said with a sly smile, "someone to share it with."

"I'll try, Oba," she replied.

Oba's gummy smile widened. "Ah, but I keep you too long. Why do you let me ramble on?"

"Nonsense," Sai Lin protested, "you're always welcome."

"Don't be silly, Little Sai," Oba replied. "Young girls should be in the company of other young ones, not an old prune like me."

Sai Lin laughed a little and walked Oba out of the stable. Sho counted his heartbeats till she came back. She fussed a little over nothing before casually closing the gates. She stayed still for a moment and then: "Clear."

"Finally!" Khan said, bursting out of the hay, "I thought that old wolfbat would never leave."

Sho emerged from his hiding spot and shook his head. He watched loose hay fall from him. He brushed a hand over his head, pulling out more of the same. His hair had been cut short in an effort to disguise him; Khan had lost his moustaches, too. Without his tail, though, Sho felt like a little boy all over again.

Sai Lin glared at the General. Sho saw the signs of another argument beginning and quickly spoke up. "You did well, Sai Lin. You have more patience than I have."

Sai Lin opened her mouth angrily, and then shut it again without saying a word. In the end she settled for a scrutinising frown over Sho, trying to spot any condescension in his manner.

Khan looked at both of them and seemed to dislike what he saw. "Hmph," he grunted, "just how much longer do we have to keep hiding like this?"

"Yes, Sai Lin," Sho said, "we can't keep staying here. Sooner or later someone will catch us out. We have to go rescue the Avatar."

"You can't rescue him," Sai Lin said, "that would be suicide."

"Then we should get help," Khan said.

Sai Lin shook her head. "We have been over this. It's too dangerous. You only just escaped; let tensions die down a bit."

"It's been four days girl," Khan retorted. "I'm all for waiting for the opportune moment but I know when to be decisive. Who knows what your _friends_are doing to him. We can't wait any longer!"

"No!" Sai Lin threw back. "It's too soon. You'll be caught and killed."

"Then I die by my own terms," Khan sneered, "not here like a chickengoat on a tether."

"If that's your attitude then maybe I should have left you to die on the mountain," Sai Lin replied.

"Maybe you should have," Khan agreed and walked out the stable's back door.

Sai Lin watched him go and spat in his direction. "How can you stand to be around him?"

Sho shrugged. "He has a point, Sai Lin. If the Avatar's life is in danger then we have a duty to do everything we can to help him."

"We don't know if he's in danger," Sai Lin said guardedly.

"You said he's a prisoner?"

She nodded. "He must be. There was gossip all over the manor about it. I haven't seen him, but Tonshi and Bokku must be keeping him under the mountain."

"That place is a maze," Sho said. "If only we had some idea where he is being kept then we'd stand a better chance of rescuing him."

"But we don't know," Sai Lin stated, "so forget about it for now."

Sho eyed her troubled face. "Sai Lin, it's not that I'm not grateful for you saving me but the Avatar's life comes before my own."

She looked at him with sullen eyes and finally sighed. "You're as stubborn as an Earthbender, you know that?"

"Thank you," Sho said with a smile and bowed.

"It wasn't a compliment," she huffed.

"Ah," Sho replied awkwardly.

Sai Lin frowned for a moment then stepped closer to him. Alarmed, Sho took a step back but she grabbed him by the collar and pulled his head down. Her other hand reached for his head.

"Sai Lin," Sho panicked, "what-?"

Her hand went to his head and above it, pulling something from his hair. Her hand came away to reveal a straw. She released his collar. "Hay in your hair," she said simply.

"Oh," Sho stuttered, "right."

She frowned at him again. "What did you think I was doing?"

"I..." Sho fumbled, "I don't..."

She sighed and tossed the stalk away. "I have things to see to, Lieutenant. Good day."

Sho watched her walk away, his mind fuddled. "Good day."

* * *

Sho had drifted into unconsciousness after his rescue and had woken up in the stable some time later, his wounds dressed, his mind completely disorientated. He couldn't see Khan so he had stumbled onto his hands and knees and crawled out of his stall. It was night but whether it was the same one he had escaped on or days later he hand no way of knowing. Sai Lin had walked into the stable then and Sho had hid behind a water barrel. When she had walked past he mustered up his strength and jumped her. She squawked in fright but his hand went around her throat and squeezed.

_"Where is the Avatar?" his hoarse voice made him sound that much fiercer, "and the General?"_

_The maid groped at his hands and gasped for air. He shook her. "Where are they?"_

_"Let go!" Sai Lin managed weakly, "I'm…help…let go!"_

_"You poisoned Khan!"_

_Her head shook violently. "No! No!"_

_"I don't trust you!" Sho shouted, "I don't-!"_

_Her hand darted out and grabbed a wooden mallet lying near them. Sho had time to blink before he was knocked unconscious._

* * *

When he had next woken, Sho had found himself lying on a pallet and back in his stall. He had a pounding headache but when he had turned over he saw General Khan lying next to him.

_"I thought it might do for you to wake up next to him this time."_

_She turned his head back to Sai Lin, who sat a cautious distance away from him. In the dim lamp light he could see bruises making an appearance around her neck. He studied her carefully as she, in turn, kept a wary eye on him._

_"Where are we?" he asked finally._

_"Yamamachi," she answered. "I hid both of you in the wagon and took you back to here. We're in my own stable."_

_"Yours?" Sho asked. "I thought you lived at the manor?"_

_"I do," she answered. "My family owns this, though."_

_"Family?" Despite himself, Sho was curious._

_"Yes," she said, and then quietly added, "They're all dead."_

_Sho could think of no appropriate reply to that. Instead he asked, "Why isn't Khan awake?"_

_Sai Lin shrugged. "Whatever happened to him has taken a toll on his body. He is an old man after all."_

_"_Whatever happened to him?_" Sho sneered. "You would know since you poisoned him."_

_"I did not," Sai Lin protested. "I didn't poison him."_

_"You gave him his tea!"_

_"That's all I did!" her shout came so loudly that the ostrichorses jittered in the neighbouring stalls. She visibly calmed herself before continuing. "That's all I did. Bokku and Tonshi are responsible for what happened to both of you. I had no idea they planned to kidnap you, let alone the Avatar."_

_"The Avatar," Sho demanded, "where is he?"_

_"Under the mountain," she replied. "But you can't go there, it is too dangerous. Tonshi has people combing the jungle looking for you."_

_"They won't expect me back so soon," Sho stubbornly rebutted. "That'll give me the element of surprise."_

_"You are not going out there, Lieutenant," Sai Lin said flatly._

_"The Avatar needs my help," Sho threw off the blanket covering him. That was when he saw that his hands were bound._

_"I did it so you wouldn't attack me again," Sai Lin explained._

_"Sai Lin, untie me," Sho commanded._

_The maidservant did not move._

_"Sai Lin, untie me or I'll burn off the ropes," Sho said._

_She shrugged. "Then burn them."_

_Sho frowned and concentrated on his chi. He pulled as much of it as he could but all he could manage was to make some smoke. After a minute of so he gave up. He was appalled to see his pitiful attempt had caused him to sweat and pant as if he'd done a day's hard training._

_Sai Lin laid a cautious but gentle hand on his arm. "You need to rest, Lieutenant."_

_He tried to raise himself up. "I need to…"_

_"Rest," and Sai Lin pushed him back down again with one hand and little effort. Rather than shame himself further, Sho finally relented and lay down, where he soon promptly fell asleep._

* * *

And that was how things had been since their hiding here. Khan had woken the next day and was even more suspicious than Sho had been. But he too had eventually agreed to stay where he was, even if he didn't believe Sai Lin. Recently, since their efforts at disguising themselves, Sai Lin had let them come through the back entrance to her home. It was a musty, old thing and it seemed to trouble her to have both of them in there. There had been some close calls, too. Guards from the manor had come to speak with her and almost made to inspect the property but somehow she always managed to turn them away.

His feet itched to be away, to save the Avatar. He did so hate waiting, but it wasn't just the danger of being caught by Tonshi's guards that stopped him from attempting a rescue. Ever since he had woken in the stable something had felt…_wrong_ with him. At first he had blamed it on being injured badly and then on Sai Lin clubbing him on the head. But the more days that past since his escape the more his disquiet grew. If he was honest with himself it was fear of being caught and brought to _Bokku_that made him afraid to go out and save the Avatar. That man had done something, changed him in some way, deep in his bones. If he was ever back in the healer's grasp who knew what more the man would do to him.

Sho left through the back door and spotted Khan. The old man was dressed in rough but clean clothes of red and green hues and he had a large oiled cloak over his shoulders, the hood pulled over his bald head. The rain was heavy for the day and the water ran off his cloak like a waterfall.

"Khan," Sho called, "where are you going?"

Khan turned sharply and looked surprised to see Sho. He pulled him closer. "Keep your voice down. I don't want your girlfriend to hear."

"She's not my-"

Khan waved him off. "Never mind that, grab your cloak and get a move on."

Sho went back into the stable and returned with his cloak, the hood pulled up against the rain. "Where are we going?"

"We are going for help," the General replied and pulled the gate open. "Now's as good a time as any and the rain should keep most people from looking us too long in the face."

"What if we are caught?" Sho asked.

"You want to be doing something, don't you?" Khan replied critically. "I can see the way you itch yourself to be on the move like a flea-bitten beggar."

Sho chose to ignore the insult and asked instead: "Where are we going to find help?"

Khan squinted at the road like he could see something out there. "I think I might know a place where we can get some. Quickly now, though, it's turning dusk and we want to be back before the night watch come out."

They hurried along the near empty boardwalk, heads bowed against the pouring rain. Khan led them through narrow passages and board streets alike. Sho's back itched to be so exposed in broad-daylight like this but Khan had been right. Hardly anyone paid attention to two men hurrying through the rain soaked streets. Once Khan pulled up short and pulled Sho into an alleyway. A small patrol passed by them, trying to keep to the sheltered edges of shops. They paid no attention to the narrow side-streets.

After a time, Khan finally led them to the town's centre. Most shops were shuttered and closed but the inns and taverns glowed with a welcoming warm light. Sho shivered and pulled his cloak closer.

"Alright," Khan said, his face dripping with rain, "with any luck, we'll find help in one of the inns."

"Mercenaries?" Sho asked incredulously.

Khan grimaced. "Something like that."

They made their way through the taverns and inns. At first, Sho relished the warmth of stepping inside the common room, but that soon wore off. The common rooms were small places and crowded with people, people who had ample opportunity to scrutinise their faces. Walking into the inns soon became something of a trial and made Sho tense up every time they crossed the threshold. And the worst part was that they couldn't just come in, search and then leave; that would have made them too conspicuous. At each tavern and inn Khan bought them a round of drinks and the General made it clear that they were to finish their pints. Completely. And it couldn't be just one drink, it had to be at least two or even three. And so by the fourth tavern they crawled into, both looking liked drowned squirrelrats, Sho found himself tripping over himself and finding the most trivial things hilarious. But he wasn't drunk, he couldn't be. A Fire Nation soldier could hold his liquor with anyone. He was simply…what was he thinking again?

"What are we looking for, honestly Khan?" Sho slurred.

The General was annoyingly sober in appearance. He scanned the room and his face lit up. "Not looking for, Sho; found. Come on."

Khan led them to a gaming table, where a lone player sat playing a game of Pai Sho. It was an elderly woman and, for some strange reason, familiar to Sho.

"Care for a game, dear?" the woman asked.

"_Pai Sho?_" Sho asked blithely as he sat in a chair, "_This_is our help?"

"Shut up and learn," Khan replied.

"Are we playing for coins?" the woman asked.

Khan turned cold eyes on her. "Does it look like I'm interested in gambling with you, old woman?"

The woman's shrunken eyes went hard. "I see. Then we have nothing to speak of then."

When the old woman made to leave Khan put his hand flat on the table. "I do not play games, old wolfbat. I know who you are."

The old woman gave a gummy smile and Sho felt a chill run through him. It was the same old lady that had visited Sai Lin this morning, Oba. Except the smile she now gave did not seem nearly so charming.

"I have no idea what you are talking about, _General_," Oba replied.

Sho's fuzzy head suddenly dropped into clarity. "What did you just…?"

Oba looked at him and cackled. "What was that, _Lieutenant_?"

"Fine," Khan growled, "we both know each other…"

"I don't," Sho grumbled.

"…so why don't we stop these little dances around the actual topic," Khan continued, "and get to the point."

Oba frowned. "I heard you were difficult. Rejected membership the three times it was offered you."

Khan's smile was a hard line. "I do not join boy's clubs."

"Do I look like a man to you?" Oba scowled. She brushed off the comment almost immediately, though. "Never mind that, you've come for help. But we cannot talk here; there are too many ears."

There was a raucous shout, a burst of laughter and someone fell backwards onto the table. The man's drink flew all over Sho and gaming pieces scattered across the room.

The man picked himself up and laughed. "Sorry, grandma, didn't realise it was seniors' night."

His group of friends sniggered. Sho wiped his face in an exaggerated manner. "Hey."

The man took a laughing swallow of his half empty mug. Sho stood and grabbed the man by his shirt. "Hey!"

"Sho!" Khan took hold of his sleeve but the young lieutenant shrugged him off.

The drunk man turned a lazy eye over Sho. "You want something, pup?"

Sho felt anger swell up in his head, mixing with the alcohol already addling his brain. "Apologise!"

The man frowned. "I already did," the man replied angrily. "Now let go or you'll get a right spanking, boy."

"Sho..." Khan warned.

But Sho did not hear him. His honour had been slighted and that was all that mattered. The drunk got out one more insulting laugh before Sho punched him squarely in the face.

* * *

Khan knew things were about to get exponentially more difficult when Sho broke the man's nose. _Spirits help us._

The drunks turned on Sho as soon as the shock wore off. The young lieutenant was ready for them and took them all on, single-handed. That plan worked fine for a while and he managed to knock out three men. But then one of them clipped Sho around the head and the tables began to turn rapidly. Khan watched this all with a look of mixture of disappointment and boredom.

"You going to help your friend out?" Oba inquired mildly.

Khan sighed and stood. He walked a pace of two up to the fight; it had gathered quite a crowd of onlookers. Then, at random, he pulled a bystander out, punched him and threw him into the brawl. Khan's action had the desired effect. The bystander swung a retaliatory punch at the first available face, who countered just the same to another until the whole thing well and truly erupted into a complete bar fight.

Oba nodded in approval. "Well done." She ducked her head to one side as a bottle flew past her. "Very well done."

Khan simply inclined his head graciously and went off to search for Sho.

* * *

Sho's whole body shuddered as a fist smacked into his jaw. He landed heavily on a table, lying on his back. The world spun crazily and blood seeped into his mouth. He tried to raise himself up but crashed back down again. His vision doubled and his attacker suddenly gained a twin. The man held a bottle by its neck and thumped it menacingly into his palm.

"I'm gonna mess you so bad you'lll have a face only a mother could love!"

Panic popped up all over Sho's mind. He couldn't get up, what could he do? The man raised his bottle and a revelation flashed through Sho. _Bend, you idiot! You can bend! Bend!_Sho threw up his hands in a wild gesture and bent.

The ground opened up and a column of earth smashed Sho's would-be attacker and sent him flying across the room.

Sho shook his head and blinked. He pulled himself upright and stared at the stone column. He didn't… He _couldn't_have…

Someone grabbed his shoulder and Sho almost lashed out before he saw who it was. Khan's eyes were hard and unreadable.

"Khan, did you…?" Sho gulped and swallowed what he was about to say.

"Come on, Lieutenant," Khan said impassively, "time to go."

Sho swallowed again and gave a shaky nod. Suddenly he felt dreadfully sick.

The old general dragged him along and they joined Oba outside. It was now dark and the rain had gotten even heavier. It pounded like a hammer on the anvil that was Sho's head and he put his hands to his temples and groaned.

"Come on!" Oba shouted above the storm. "The Watch will be here soon. We've got to get away."

Khan nodded grimly. "Lead the way, old wolfbat."

They ran along the roads, their feet thumping on the wooden boardwalks. The way was lit occasionally by the flash of lightning and punctuated by the responding thunder.

"Khan," Sho moaned, "I feel sick."

"You can throw up soon, Lieutenant," Khan replied sympathetically.

"Here," Oba called and she pounded her fist on a door. The house looked familiar but it was hard to tell in the dark.

Sai Lin opened the door. She looked like she was just about to head out dressed as she was with a cloak on and a lamp in her hand.

"Oba?" she said, surprised, "what are you…?"

Oba pushed her way in and Khan and Sho followed her. Sai Lin watched them march through the door and her eyes widened. "Where have you two been? What are you doing with Oba?"

Sho pulled off the hood of his cloak and Sai Lin paled. "What happened to your face?"

Oba patted the maid gently. "Calm yourself, Little Sai, it is alright."

"Oba," Sai Lin asked urgently, "how do you know these people?"

Oba smiled, a twinkle in her eye. "The General and I are…acquaintances."

Sai Lin gave Khan a hard-eyed look and the General returned it with a knowing grin. "Unfortunately, she's right. Don't you know, girl, that all old people know each other."

Sai Lin glared at him for a moment longer before asking Oba: "What is going on here?"

"Trust me, Little Sai, I have just as many questions as you," Oba replied. "But we can't get them tonight. I must make sure the Watch is not on to us."

Sho chose that moment to quietly throw up.

"I will clean that up," Oba said with a frown, "and see you all tomorrow. In the meantime, Little Sai, you'd better see to your friend. I'm afraid he's had a little too much to drink."

* * *

Sai Lin sat Sho down on the bed that had once been her brother's. Before, when things were happier. Before the war took him. Tonight's drama had made little sense to her. How in the world did Oba know Khan? Why hadn't she said something earlier? Khan had hinted that Oba was part of something much bigger, some sort of organisation even. If that was true did she know about _her_? What if Oba told the other two about her, that she was keeping secrets? Sai Lin shook her head. If the others knew then they would have confronted her about it. Besides, there was no point scaring herself over something that might not have happened.

Sho winced as Sai Lin cleaned his face with a cloth. "That hurts," he mumbled; his jaw was starting to swell.

"Well, it's more than you deserve," Sai Lin scolded, "getting into fights and putting us all in danger."

"I'm sorry," he replied.

Sai Lin stopped her cleaning and looked at him. His eyes, bruising as they were, told her he was sincere. She sighed and continued cleaning, this time with a gentler hand. "It's okay," she muttered.

They were silent for a moment before Sho asked, "Sai Lin, do you hate me?"

She blinked. "Why would you ask a question like that?"

He gave a small shrug. "I can't tell. You confuse me so much. Do you like me or hate me?"

Sai Lin stared at his blank features and glassy eyes and found no reply. When she didn't respond Sho only nodded. "You're confused too."

"You're drunk," Sai Lin stated. "And you stink."

"If it helps," Sho said and leaned in closer, "I like you."

Sai Lin jerked her head back from him. Sho only smiled stupidly at her.

"On second thought," she said heatedly, "your face is fine. Goodnight."

"I earthbent today," Sho said.

Sai Lin snapped her head back to him. The Lieutenant's features were still a blank. "What?" she asked.

When Sho said nothing she grabbed his head in her hands. "What did you say, Sho?" she demanded.

Sho winced in pain. "Oww, someone must have knocked me around really hard because my head is really…"

And then his head fell on her shoulder as he promptly fell asleep.

Sai Lin sat, stunned. She did not move for a long time, unable to think. Then, carefully, she laid Sho down on the bed and covered him up. She still didn't leave, though, and just sat watching the Lieutenant sleep. Hesitantly, almost fearfully, she touched his face gently. Then a moment later she snatched her hand away, blew out the candle and left.


	13. Endgame

**Chapter 13: Endgame**

Sai Lin had the door to the Avatar's cell opened for her and she stepped inside, carrying his meal. She had been doing this every day for him since his incarceration. Strangely, she'd come to look forward to these encounters. The Avatar would always try and convince her of the flaws of the Colonists' plans and she would try to show him otherwise. As she went into the cell, though, she halted. There was something different, a strange feeling in the air. Her eyes fell on the Avatar and her breath caught. He was sitting, his back against the wall, his head down. Usually the Avatar would be waiting to greet her with a smile and a 'hello' but he didn't even raise his head as Sai Lin came to sit next to him. His shoulders were hunched and his skin was pale. The bruises on him had started to fade to yellow; it made him look sick. Despite herself, she felt deeply worried. What had happened to him?

"Avatar?" she asked cautiously.

Slowly he raised his head. Sai Lin blinked at what she saw. His eyes had sunk deeply into his head and were ringed with dark circles. His lips were blood red and made a striking contrast against his pale complexion. The Avatar pulled a weary smile but it only made his face that more terrifying.

"Hello, Sai Lin," he said weakly.

"What has happened to you?" Sai Lin couldn't keep the worry out of her voice.

The Avatar's smile dropped a little and his eyes could no longer hold any happiness in them. "Bokku…" he shifted uncomfortably, "Bokku almost…reached the Avatar Spirit today."

Sai Lin looked at him. That was supposed to be good news; she always thought that announcement would fill her with pride. She didn't feel that right now.

The Avatar continued. "He was inside me, Sai Lin. I could feel it." The Avatar's voice was quivery and fragile. "He touched it Sai Lin. His fingers brushed along the edge of it and…" His voice finally broke and he burst into tears. "He almost had it, Sai Lin. I feel _sick_."

Sai Lin could find nothing to say. She only watched as he shakily scrubbed the tears away from his eyes. She wanted to reach out and comfort him. But it wasn't supposed to be like this!

"I'm sorry," he said and put on his smile again. "A grown man shouldn't cry, huh?"

Sai Lin only shrugged a little.

"It's just…" and his face went back and forth between sadness and feigned happiness, "there's this girl. And…I was gonna _marry_her."

His whole body slumped then, a posture of supreme grief. "I guess that isn't gonna happen now."

* * *

Katara approached the manor with a stomach full of butterflies. There was a light drizzle that misted the view of the great stone building rising from the treetops. Its background was imposed with a massive, broad mountain. There was something very foreboding about this entire place but she couldn't put her finger on why. As she walked through town leading her brother's eelhound every head turned to watch her. It was hard to feel comfortable under all that scrutiny. At least soon she'd be with Aang and, therefore, in much better company. She blushed a little thinking of him. It _would_be nice to see him again.

She crossed the outer courtyard and knocked on the doors. Absently, she wondered why no one had come to meet her. Then again, it wasn't like she was expected in town. The door opened to let out a young woman dressed in what must have been the house livery.

"Yes?" the woman asked with blankly staring eyes.

"Umm…" Katara began nervously, "sorry, you don't know me probably but I was hoping to speak to Aang."

The maid's eyes twitched at the name. "Excuse me?"

"My name's Katara. I'm a…_friend_of his." She couldn't help but quirk a smile at herself for being so stupidly coy.

But for some reason Katara's introduction seemed to distress this maid. Her eyes blinked rapidly and her posture went very stiff.

"I'm sorry, Miss," the maid said finally, her voice strangely disjointed. "But the Avatar is busy at the moment."

Katara almost laughed. "Trust me; he'll make an exception for me."

The odd maid's face made a series of queer expressions Katara couldn't follow. "I…if you'll follow me."

Sokka's eelhound was taken to the stables and Katara happily joined the maid. Inside the manor was truly beautiful but very strange. There was a weird mix of Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom design. She would've liked to spend more time examining it but her maid escort wasted no time in leading her through the building.

"Your manor," Katara said by way of conversation, "it's very…"

The maid stopped suddenly and spun to face her. "Yes?" Her face was a mask of civility but her tone was a different matter.

Katara tried for a disarming smile. "Beautiful."

The maid blinked and the severity of her face fell away a little. "Sorry?"

"It's beautiful," Katara repeated.

The maid studied her for a moment. "We…don't often hear that from our visitors."

"No?"

She shook her head. "Most people find our culture disturbing."

Katara shrugged. "It _is_a little strange."

"And that doesn't bother you?" the maid asked.

"Why should it?" Katara replied.

The maid stood expecting something more and looked surprised when Katara gave no further comment. Was it just her imagination or was the maid looking at her differently now?

"This is the Acting-Governor's study," the maid said, indicating the door behind her.

"And Aang's in there?" Katara asked.

"I'll let Governor Tonshi explain that," the maid replied.

"Oh," Katara replied, not liking the ominous sound of that answer. She wondered what sort of trouble Aang had gotten into that his situation needed to be _explained_ by the local authority. _You airhead; you'd better be alright._

"Come along," the maid said, reaching for the door.

"Ah…aren't you supposed to announce me or something?" Katara was hopeless at these formal affairs but she felt sure that announcements were the usual thing for unexpected visitors.

"Probably," the maid replied. Was that a _smirk_on her face? The maid opened the door. "Governor Tonshi you have a visitor. Katara, a friend of the Avatar's."

From the look on Governor Tonshi's face, Katara's assumption about guest announcements was correct. The thin faced man's eyes widened and he stood up quickly from his desk.

"Master Katara," he said in a reedy voice, "I had no idea that you were coming. I would have prepared a proper welcome for you if you'd have sent word."

Katara smiled. "I came on a whim, Governor. And please, call me Katara. 'Master' is only for my pupils."

"I see, I see," the governor said in a distracted manner. His eyes were drifting over to the maid; it wasn't a friendly look. Why would the maid get herself in trouble like that? Katara decided to divert his attention away.

"So, Governor, I've been told you could tell me where Aang is," she said pleasantly.

"The _Avatar_?" Governor Tonshi's voice raised several octaves. Katara felt her nerves jump; she did not like where this was going.

The maid took that moment to bow and leave. The Governor called her sharply, however. "Sai Lin! Stay and attend."

The maid bowed again, stiffly, and moved to one side, kneeling, and her back against the wall. Governor Tonshi turned to Katara and pulled a large smile. "Take a seat, Katara. I shall call for tea and we can talk."

Katara's nerves jumped again. Now it was _her_ turn for her attention to be diverted. Toph had a name for this sort of thing; being _handled_. Katara did not like being handled.

"Where is Aang, Governor?" she asked in a firm voice.

"The Avatar?" the governor said in a casual manner. "He is out at the moment."

"_Out_?"

"Ye-yes," the Governor stuttered. He took his place behind his desk again. "Please, Katara, won't you take a seat. Our tea should be here shortly."

"I don't want tea, Governor," Katara replied flatly. "I want to know where Aang is. What's happened to him?"

The governor's eyes widened. "_Happened to him_? Why would anything have happened to him?"

Katara's nerves just hit the roof. Her words came out like ice chips snapping off her tongue. "Listen to me, _Governor_, you are going to tell me where Aang is or I will tear this town-!"

The study door opened. Katara spun her head, some part of her foolishly hoping it was Aang. It wasn't. A bookish sort of man carrying scrolls entered the room. He glanced at Katara and his eyebrows rose. "Oh?"

"Bokku, my friend!" Governor Tonshi exclaimed. "Welcome; as you can see we have a guest. This is a friend of the Avatar's; Katara…"

"…Of the Southern Water Tribe," this new man, Bokku, finished. "Of course!" He approached Katara and shifted his scrolls around to shake her hand. "I should have realised. It is a real honour to meet a Master."

"You know me?" Katara asked in confusion.

Bokku shrugged, embarrassed. "Only heard of you, really. You know the stories that go around about the Avatar and his amazing travelling companions."

"Ah," Katara said; it was her turn to be embarrassed. "I see."

"I must admit that I always wanted to meet you," Bokku continued. "Such a young woman but with such talent in waterbending. I hear you can even heal? And that you saved the Avatar's life once with your skills."

"It…it wasn't really much on my part, I'm afraid," Katara said shyly.

"Bokku is our town physician," Tonshi explained.

"Physician?" Katara repeated. "But I didn't think…"

"That a man could learn healing?" Bokku said with a grin. "Just like a girl couldn't learn combat? You are not the first one to break conventional thinking."

Katara gave a small embarrassed laugh. "I guess not."

"I've also been helping the Avatar with his investigation," Bokku continued.

"And where is Aang now?" Katara asked pointedly.

"Governor Tonshi didn't tell you?" Bokku said, surprised. "The Avatar is on the Mountain."

Katara looked out the window; Mount Kawayama cut an imposing image in the sky. "The mountain?"

"Yes," Tonshi said. "I apologise for not explaining sooner, but I didn't want to worry you. You see, the Avatar and his associates are following a lead. They believe smugglers were responsible for Governor Faizin's death. They follow the smuggler's trail they found in hopes of catching them."

"How long have they been there?" Katara asked.

"A day so far," Tonshi answered. "But the Avatar said he could be there for up to three."

"_Three days_?" Katara said in dismay.

"I know you're worried, Katara," Bokku said. "But we three have seen the Avatar and his friends in action. We're confident that they'll be fine."

"I hope so," Katara replied quietly.

"In the meantime," Tonshi added, "please stay with us in the Manor." He clapped his hands once and a servant appeared. "The staff will direct you to a guest room."

Katara nodded; still in a bit of shock at the news she'd received. Aang was going to be gone for _three whole days_. She gave a small sigh; oh well, she had waited almost a month without any word from him. She could go a bit longer. As she started to follow the servant Bokku stopped her.

"I hope to be able to talk to you later, Katara," he said. "I'm very interested in how my people are faring."

She smiled at him. "I look forward to catching you up, Bokku."

* * *

Sai Lin watched Katara leave the room and was surprised to feel herself disappointed. Her meeting with the Avatar this morning had left her in an uncharacteristically pessimistic mood. Her mind wanted to think about what kind of danger the Avatar was currently in but she kept forcing herself away from the point. To think about it meant that she would feel guilty, and feeling guilty would force her to do something about it. And she didn't _want_to be the one to do something. Now with the arrival of Katara, a friend of the Avatar, it seemed liked she would be saved from making any definitive decision against her people.

Or so she thought. She hadn't counted on Bokku's untimely arrival. The healer had skilfully manipulated Katara away from her anger as easily as healing a cut. And with Katara pacified it fell once again to Sai Lin to do something to save the Avatar.

Sai Lin was started out of her thoughts when Tonshi backhanded her across the face.

"How dare you!" he spat. "What sort of game do you think you're playing at?"

Sai Lin gingerly touched her cheek. She gave Tonshi a malicious smile. "It was worth it just to see the look on your face, _Acting Governor_."

Tonshi turned purple with anger and raised his hand again but Bokku caught his wrist.

"Enough!"

Tonshi looked like he would press the issue but finally turned away in disgust. Bokku extended a hand and helped Sai Lin off the floor. When Sai Lin made to let go Bokku held on to her. "I don't know what's gotten into your head, Sai Lin, but Tonshi is right. That was a foolish thing that you did. You should have warned us of Katara's arrival."

Sai Lin yanked her hand away. "You seem to have handled it well enough."

"And I could have done it better still," Bokku retorted, "if I had a little time to prepare."

"Speaking of which," Tonshi said loudly, "when will the Avatar be ready?"

Bokku laughed derisively. "Tonshi, you're so wonderfully simple."

The Acting-Governor's face darkened. "Excuse me?"

"You make it sound like I'm cooking a roast," Bokku remarked. "And I'm afraid it's a little more complicated than that."

"Then when will whatever it is that you are doing be finished," Tonshi threw back.

"Soon," Sai Lin answered, remembering how the Avatar looked this morning.

Bokku looked at her curiously. "Yes. Soon."

"How _soon_?" Tonshi insisted.

"I am close," Bokku said. "I may even break through to the Avatar Spirit tomorrow."

Tonshi's face lit up. "That's fantastic! I shall prepare our soldiers immediately."

Bokku raised his hands. "Tonshi, you misunderstand me. I said I would _break through_to the Avatar Spirit. Understanding it is going to take much longer."

"_How_much longer?"

The healer shrugged. "A basic understanding will take _at least_three weeks."

"_Three weeks_!" Tonshi said, horrified. "We can't wait that long!"

"I can't speed it up," Bokku replied calmly, "not without exceptional harm to me and the Avatar."

"But don't you realise?" Tonshi shouted. "People are already growing suspicious of us. This girl, Katara, was nipping at my heels before you arrived. And spirits knows where Khan and the other one went!"

"Sho," Sai Lin absently corrected.

"What?" Tonshi asked her irritably.

Sai Lin looked at him as if suddenly aware of where she was. "Nothing."

Tonshi glared at her before continuing. "We can't wait three weeks, Bokku. We must press our advantage now while we still have it. Tomorrow, at first light, our army will march and destroy the closest outpost. From there we will attack every area occupied by the Fire Nation and the Earth Kingdom until our borders are clear."

Sai Lin rounded on him. "Then what was the point of kidnapping the Avatar? To prove that we could? The army needs the secrets of the Avatar Spirit to unlock their full potential and truly be a force to be reckoned with!"

"Bokku will have its secrets in three weeks," Tonshi said confidently. "By then we will have captured enough key areas with our surprise assault."

"That's a lot to have resting on such a weak support," Sai Lin countered. She turned to Bokku. "Can you really know enough of the Avatar Spirit by then to help the army?"

Bokku raised his head and looked down on her haughtily. "Of course."

"You see?" Tonshi said smugly. "Just make sure that this friend of the Avatar stays out of our way long enough for us to move. Understood?"

Sai Lin glowered at him but nodded in mechanical obedience. "Understood."

She left them then and wandered the halls of the manor aimlessly. She was supposed to be heading home and listening as Oba explained how exactly she knew General Khan. But the idea of facing Oba, Khan and Sho and lying _again_about everything was something she could no longer stomach. Things had complicated around her so quickly that no decision seemed like the right one anymore. When had it gotten like this?

Sai Lin's wanderings brought her to the edge of the inner courtyard. She stopped as something caught her attention. Katara was there practising her waterbending. Tonshi and Bokku had refered to her as a Master and from the display, Sai Lin had to agree. She moved like a dancer and the water curved sinuously to her gestures. Sai Lin watched in awe as the master bender actually Pulled water from the air around her. The sunlight dazzled across her and caught in her jewellery. Sai Lin frowned and tried to peer closer at Katara's necklace. It was hard to tell from a distance but it looked a lot like the one she had seen the Avatar with. Sai Lin had often caught the Avatar staring at it when he thought he was alone.

Curious, Sai Lin approached her. Katara saw her coming and released her bending. Puddles of water splashed around her and began quickly to mist in the heat.

"Hi," Katara called. Her smile was warm and friendly. "This place is fantastic for waterbending. There's so much moisture in the air. Is it always this wet?"

Sai Lin nodded, a little unsure how to take her enthusiasm. "Yes, Miss, in the rainy season."

"Hey, you can call me Katara," the woman encouraged.

"Yes…Katara," Sai Lin said awkwardly.

"Your healer, Bokku, seems like a nice man," Katara continued.

Sai Lin felt like she was swimming in discomfort. "Yes, I suppose. I do not know him that well." _Spirits, what I wouldn't give for one honest conversation!_

"I wonder if he could teach me some healing techniques," Katara mused.

Sai Lin snuck glance at the Waterbender's necklace whilst she appeared deep in thought. It _was_similar to the Avatar's. Katara noticed her look and smiled, touching the necklace.

Sai Lin blushed furiously. "I'm sorry," she stammered, "I didn't mean to stare."

Katara shook her head. "It's fine. It was my mother's. She was killed in the War."

"I'm sorry," Sai Lin said, shamed at bringing up such a painful topic.

"No, it's fine, really," Katara insisted. "During the War it was such a big deal for me and I'm not saying that it isn't anymore but…" and she paused, "it's amazing what a lot of time can do." And this time her smile held sadness.

Sai Lin cleared her throat a little. "I have seen another like it."

Katara looked surprised. "Another betrothal necklace?"

Sai Lin blinked. "Sorry?"

"Betrothal necklace," Katara explained. "That's what they are."

Sai Lin stared at her. "You are married?"

Katara burst into laughter. "Spirits, no! Aang's feet get cold every time he even _thinks_of asking me."

"You and the Avatar are a couple," Sai Lin said numbly.

"Yes," Katara said with a hint of red appearing in her cheeks. "Six years and going strong. Now are you sure it was a betrothal necklace?"

_...I was gonna marry her._

The Avatar's words crashed into Sai Lin and her body shut down in response.

It was her. This was the girl that the Avatar loved. This was the girl he wanted to marry.

But no longer could.

Katara's features creased in concern. "Are you alright? You've gone pale."

She had been able to suppress the truth of her situation before because the consequences had not seemed real. She had excuses for everything. They had kidnapped the Avatar? A necessary act done out of desperation. The Avatar was sick? Everyone got ill for a while during Bokku's treatments. The Avatar was going to _die_? She recalled she once had an excuse for that too. But with Katara standing in front of her, reality was starting to hit home and she found she could excuse it no longer.

The Avatar was going to die.

It was only when she felt Katara's hands hold her gently by the shoulders did Sai Lin realise that she was crying. The Avatar's love was trying to console _her_. Self-loathing began to consume her.

"I can't _do_this anymore," she sobbed.

"Then don't," Katara said. Her face was so _sympathetic_that Sai Lin could hardly stand it. "Take charge of whatever is getting you down and make it right."

Sai Lin looked at her and saw the confidence in her eyes. This woman...if she knew what Sai Lin had done she would hate her. But there was no hate there, only belief. Sai Lin had no idea why but this woman made her feel she still had a chance to change things around. To make things right again.

"I need you to come with me," Sai Lin said.

Katara straightened at her serious tone. "Where?"

"My home," Sai Lin said. "You and some others need to know the truth."

Katara frowned. "What truth?"

Sai Lin could hide no longer. "About the Avatar."

* * *

Katara could barely contain herself during the short trip to the maid Sai Lin's house. She had harassed the girl with questions about Aang but she said she wouldn't talk until 'they' were all there. Who were 'they'? And what had happened to Aang? Katara's nerves were starting to flare again and she feared that this time they wouldn't be placated. As they stepped through the door of Sai Lin's home Katara could stand it no more.

"Alright," she demanded, "I've had enough. Where is Aang?"

"About time you showed up. Where have you been?"

Katara blinked. Someone had spoken at the same time as her. She turned around and was surprised to see the room was occupied by three other people; an old man and woman and a young man. The young man sported a black eye. Their reactions to her presence varied. The old man's eyes widened for a moment then narrowed in suspicion. The woman simply quirked an eyebrow in surprise. The young man, however, actually stood and looked about to attack her. But then he suddenly seemed unsure of himself and lowered his hands jerkily.

"Who is this?" The old man asked bluntly.

Sai Lin stepped protectively in front of Katara. Katara could feel the hostility radiating from the two of them.

"This is Katara," Sai Lin said, "Master Waterbender and friend of the Avatar."

More surprise lit up their faces; the young man even went so far as to bow to her. Who _were_these people?

As if reading her thoughts, Sai Lin spoke up. "Katara, allow me to introduce you to the two other investigators in Governor Faizin's murder: Lieutenant Sho Qin of the Fire Nation and General Khan of the Earth Kingdom."

Katara's eyes widened. These two were the _investigators_? But they were supposed to be up on the mountain! She felt herself panic; _where_was Aang?

"And I," said the old woman, "am Oba, a member of the White Lotus Society."

"A pleasure to meet you all," Katara replied numbly. At the mention of the White Lotus Society her feelings of dread had just trebled. "Could someone _please_tell me what's going on?"

Oba grimaced. "You may want to sit down."

"No," Sai Lin demanded. All eyes turned to her. "Allow me to explain."

There was something about the way she spoke that sent alarm bells ringing in Katara's head. She glanced at the others to see that tension tracing their features also. It seemed they too, were not expecting the maid to speak up. Sai Lin took a deep, steadying breath.

"The Avatar has been kidnapped," she said, "and...I am to blame."


	14. The Truth

**Chapter 14: The Truth**

Katara fell into a daze as Sai Lin spoke. Her mind absorbed the points that mattered most. Aang was a prisoner. He was being experimented on. The Colonists were marching to war. The other things mentioned – duelbending, conspiracies, murder – they flew over her head, her mind too shocked to process them. She was dimly aware of the others talking. Her eyes drifted over their faces and absently took in their expressions: anger, outrage, fear, hurt, disappointment, betrayal. But none of these truly registered to her. Her mind was on Aang and it brought up images of his face, his smile and his laugh. And then cruelly it imposed those images against torture and beatings and death. She physically jerked and shuddered and frantically pulled away from such thoughts. A sudden feeling of vertigo hit her. The world spun, her vision darkened. She was falling. She was drowning.

Sai Lin being violently manhandled snapped in front of her eyes. Reality returned and Katara responded to it. In an instant she was on her feet grabbing Sai Lin's assailant.

"Let her go," she said, her voice as flat as a sheet of ice.

The young Fire Nation's man's eyes were radiating his emotions. He seemed on the verge of tears. His words strained to get out. "How can you be so calm?"

"I'm not," Katara said. Aang's face floated across her mind and she had to blink back tears. "I'm not calm at all."

Lieutenant Sho stared at her, struggling to control his features. In the end he realised he couldn't and he ran out the room. Katara glanced at Sai Lin. The girl had one hand to her chest, her face pale and visibly shaken. Her eyes watched the Lieutenant leave and a greater pain than she had displayed before washed over her face.

Someone laughed. Katara turned her head to the old man, General Khan. Anger burned through her. "What's so funny about this?"

Khan looked at her and bowed his head apologetically. He was still smiling, however when he answered. "Nothing funny, really; just an observation. Tell me, girl," he directed at Sai Lin, "have you betrayed _every_ man that gained your trust? Faizin, Aang and now Sho. And people say _I'm _dangerous."

Then he too got up and left the room. Sai Lin looked at Oba. "Are you going to leave also?"

Oba's face was a picture of disappointment. "I'm tempted." She sighed heavily. "This was a foolish thing you did, Little Sai."

Sai Lin nodded at the truth. She turned to Katara. "I've hurt you badly. Why do you not also go? Don't you hate me?"

Katara took a moment to reply. "I don't hate you. Honestly, I couldn't tell you what I feel right now." She shivered and tried not to think about what might be happening to Aang. "I've got no time to worry about my feelings. Aang's in trouble. You know where he is, Sai Lin. I need you to take me to him."

Sai Lin stared at her. "You'd rescue him by yourself?"

"If I have to," Katara answered. "If you won't show me the way I'll find someone else. And if I can't find someone else, I'll go in alone. I _need_ to save Aang."

"You won't have to go alone," Sai Lin told her. "I will help you."

Katara smiled at her but it was a mechanical gesture. Her head was a jungle, a place of wild terror hidden from view. Will power held her together and nothing more. It would be enough.

"There's something else we must discuss," Oba announced. "This army you spoke of; you said it marches tomorrow?"

Sai Lin nodded. "At first light."

Oba said some words Katara felt no old person should have known. "This doesn't give us much time."

Katara's brow creased as she studied her. "What exactly is the White Lotus doing here? Did you know about this army?"

Oba became suddenly guarded. "I heard rumours but nothing confirmed."

Katara frowned at her. "How convenient that the White Lotus society would have someone here already."

Oba matched her frown. "We knew that the Colonies would be trouble after the War. A good thing we were prudent enough to have recruited agents here otherwise we would be in real danger."

"And we aren't already?" Katara questioned.

"When I heard the rumour that the Avatar and his companions had gone on an _extended field trip_ I knew the signs," Oba explained. "There's a company of White Lotus Society members stationed about a day away from the town. If I can contact them they can be on the move to stop this army before it does any lasting damage."

"_Lasting damage_?" Katara said angrily. "There can't be_ any_ damage, any harm done to any Fire Nation or Earth Kingdom outpost. The slightest provocation will lead to war. Aang's worked too hard to have it all fall to pieces again!"

"There is no fast way for me to reach them!" Oba retorted sharply. "I must do what I can."

Katara felt a reply start on her lips but Sai Lin spoke up first. "There is a way to reach the White Lotus Society quickly."

The other two women stared at her.

"Well don't leave us in suspense, Little Sai," Oba huffed.

Sai Lin shrugged. "Appa."

"Appa?"

"Appa!" Katara cried. She gave a genuine smile. "Of course!"

"You mean that flying animal the Avatar rides?" Oba grimaced. "No thanks. My feet stay firmly on the ground."

"You're gonna have to if you want to reach the White Lotus in time." Katara said. "Appa is faster even than an eelhound."

Oba did not look happy but commented on it no further. Instead she said, "Even if I reach them in time for them to come and stop this army we should still have a backup plan."

"When we free Aang he can stop them," Katara said.

"That's only if the Avatar is in a favourable condition when you find him," Oba countered.

Katara grimaced but she had to concede the point. She hoped Oba's fears wouldn't be a reality.

"General Khan and Lieutenant Sho can slow down the Colonist army until the White Lotus arrives," Oba suggested.

"That's a lot of pressure to put on only two people," Katara said.

"I'm not expecting them to stop the army," Oba replied. "We just need them to buy us some time."

"It'll be dangerous," Sai Lin mumbled.

"And the rest of our plan isn't?" Oba sniffed. "They are soldiers, Little Sai; risk and danger are part of their job."

She stood up. "I will go find General Khan and them him of our plan. Then I must go and prepare for this trip. I will see you both in an hour."

When Oba left through the back door Katara turned to Sai Lin. "Can you go over again what happened to Aang? I'm afraid I…I didn't take most of it in."

Sai Lin stared at the back door, her eyes distant. Katara studied her with concern and gently touched her arm.

"Sai Lin?"

Sai Lin blinked and looked at her.

"Are you okay?" Katara asked.

She stared at her. "You are asking if _I'm _okay?"

Katara shrugged and gave her a bitter smile. "I already know how I feel."

Sai Lin nodded slowly but it took her a moment before answering Katara's question. "Khan was right, you know. I am a traitor. I've betrayed everyone I ever cared about: Governor Faizin, the Avatar, Sho and now my people."

Katara shook her head. "You're not betraying your people."

"I'm not?" Sai Lin quirked an eyebrow. "I'm helping you kill hundreds of Colonists. I've ruined our last chance of independence."

"You are saving lives, Sai Lin," Katara replied. "You're stopping a war."

Sai Lin gave a painful smile. "You sound just like him, the Avatar. But both of you don't understand. The people in that army are my friends. I grew up with them."

"You can't hold yourself responsible for their decisions, Sai Lin. They are adults; they know what they are doing."

"You might be right," Sai Lin quietly replied. "But that doesn't make me feel less guilty."

* * *

Khan found Sho moping in the far corner of Sai Lin's yard, hidden in a copse of trees. The boy sat on a large stone and kicked the pebbles at his feet. Khan eyed the scorch against the trunks without surprise. What _was_ interesting was the cracked earth around the trees.

"I see you're doing what most Fire Nation men do when things don't go their way," Khan remarked.

Sho eyed him. "What's that?"

"Sulk," Khan stated.

Sho turned on him angrily. "And you've employed the Earth Kingdom's most favourite tactic: running away!"

Khan surprised the Lieutenant by giving him a friendly smile. "I remember a time when you would've responded to that jab by declaring Agni Ki. Lieutenant Sho, you are improving by leaps and bounds."

Sho flushed and Khan's smile broadened at his flustered embarrassment. The former huffed and sat back down on his rock. "What do you want, General?"

_Start with the carrot_, Khan thought as he Pulled up a rocky seat of his own. _Then bring in the stick_.

"I thought we might talk about your earthbending," he said aloud.

Sho stiffened. "I have no idea what you're talking about," he replied guardedly.

Khan gave him a sly look. "Think fast, Lieutenant."

And then he swung his foot forward and the pebbles on the ground shot out like missiles. Sho reacted instinctively and thrust his hand out. The stones stopped suddenly, suspended in the air. Sho stared at them in horror before throwing them aside.

"You knew," he asked, his voice shaken.

Khan shrugged. "The signs were obvious for one who recognises them."

Sho looked at the earth surrounding the trees and grimaced. "I didn't mean to do it," he muttered.

Khan only sighed audibly. Sho's head shot up and glared at him defiantly.

"I didn't _want_ to do it!" he shouted.

"Whether you wanted to or not doesn't matter," Khan replied levelly. "It's done."

"No!" Sho yelled. "This is Bokku's fault!"

"Maybe," Khan replied indifferently.

"This is _their _fault!" Sho continued. "Bokku, Tonshi and Sai Lin."

"Now you're just being silly," Khan commented.

"_Silly?_" Sho spluttered. "If it wasn't for them we never would have been captured! If it wasn't for them the Avatar would be here! If not for them I wouldn't be an Earthbender!"

"No," Khan stated.

"'No'? What do you mean 'no'?"

"Tonshi might have played you, Sai Lin might have lied to you and Bokku may have twisted you but there is only one real person to blame for your bending," Khan said. "And that's you."

"What?" Sho asked again.

Khan rolled his eyes in frustration. "Did not hear anything that girl said? Apparently Bokku can only make dual-benders if the pedigree's right."

Sho's face hardened stubbornly. "Why would I listen to anything _she _says?"

Khan's hand struck Sho's head faster than an eye blink. "Idiot! Stop thinking with your heart and start using your head! You can't bend earth unless you're an earthbender and you can't be an earthbender without Earth Kingdom blood."

Sho's face took on a fixed look, one of desperately seeking a way out. Khan noted it and tried not to let his sympathy cross his face as he pressed on. "I always wondered why the Fire Lord would send an imbecile like you to the Colonies. And now I know why. You, Sho Qin, are from the Earth Kingdom."

Khan watched the truth sink in to the Lieutenant. His face went white and he shook his head violently. "No! That's impossible! My family has _generations_ going back into the Fire Nation."

"When the War started there were plenty of families that changed their names and went into hiding. The Qin's could well have been one of them," Khan suggested.

Sho shook his head slowly. "No…"

"Yes," Khan rebutted. "Believe me, Lieutenant; the last thing I want is to be even remotely related to you. But this is the truth."

Sho trembled and put his head in his hands. "Okay…okay. So what do I do then?"

Khan snorted. "Stop feeling sorry for yourself, for starters. Being an earthbender isn't all _that_ bad."

Sho looked up. "And?"

"Make the most of it," Khan said. "That's all."

Sho nodded slowly. Khan admired the boy's acceptance. Even Khan didn't think he would take to the idea so quickly. He was an earthbender, he hated change. Spirits forbid if he suddenly found himself a firebender too.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything?"

Khan started and spun. Oba stood looking rather old and innocent. Khan's brow creased in a frown. How did she sneak up on him like that? If anything it proved the old bat wasn't anything but a sweet old lady.

"What is it?" Khan asked.

Oba glanced briefly behind him. Khan turned his head slightly and noticed Sho was not paying attention to either of them.

"Continue," Khan shrugged. "He's listening."

Oba quirked an eyebrow. "If you say so. We have made plans. Katara and Sai Lin will try and rescue the Avatar. We are also going to use Appa to fly me to the White Lotus company hiding in the swamps. Whilst they are moving to intercept the Colonist army you two will move out on Katara's eelhound…"

"And try and delay the army," Khan finished. He nodded his head in thought. "Sho and I aren't going to be more than a flea bite to the army."

"I know," Oba said. "That's why you may take my small supply of blasting jelly."

Khan's eyes widened and even Sho perked up.

"You keep explosives in your home? Remind me never to take tea from you." Khan said. This woman was definitely not the sweet and innocent type of grandmother. "I suppose you didn't tell Katara and Sai Lin of this."

"I saw no need," Oba replied. "Neither of them would have approved of its use."

"I see," Khan mused. "Blasting jelly would certainly put more of a sting in our bite."

"I will need to get it from my home," Oba said. "But a strong pair of hands will be necessary to carry it."

Sho got the meaning. "I'll go get our cloaks."

Oba watched him go and then gave Khan a pointed look. "There is something else."

Khan rolled his eyes. "Isn't there always?"

"I want you to have this." And she pressed something into his hand.

Khan looked at it and grimaced. It was a White Lotus tile. "I don't want it."

"Take it, General," Oba insisted.

"Why?"

"Because you need it," she answered.

"I don't want to be associated with a bunch of hypocritical elitists, thank you very much," Khan scoffed and tried to hand back the tile.

"Are you really going to let a grudge make your choices for you?" Oba countered.

Khan's face darkened. "Do you think you know me, old bat? You know nothing!"

"I know why you won't join the White Lotus Society," Oba revealed.

"Oh?" Khan sneered. "Then, please, do share."

* * *

Sho stepped into Sai Lin's house, his mind in a fug. His hands shook a little as he opened the door. He was acutely aware of his hesitancy to use them for anything. It was silly, really. He had never been afraid of his power before. But then, he had never been an earthbender before, either.

Earthbender.

The thought struck him like a mental slap in the face. He was an earthbender. His hands shook more fiercely and he fisted them to keep them still. But then he released them quickly; afraid of what he could do now with his fists. Angry tension gripped his stomach muscles. This wasn't fair; he shouldn't have to be afraid of every little gesture he made. But as General Khan liked to point out often, life was hardly fair.

"Lieutenant? Are you alright?"

Sho looked across to Katara. She sat with Sai Lin, the latter not raising her head to look at him. Sho felt a flash of anger burn quickly through him. He had trusted Sai Lin. More than that, he had considered her his only friend in Yamamachi. Her earlier revelations had gutted Sho. Before Khan had found him in the yard Sho had been mentally going over every single word he had shared with Sai Lin, examining their conversations for duplicity on her part. He had been so stupid to be so trusting of her.

"Lieutenant?" Katara called him again.

Sho answered her mechanically. "It's nothing. Oba wants my help getting a few things at her place. I'm grabbing my cloak."

"Oh," Katara replied. "Be careful."

Sai Lin still did not raise her head. If anything, that angered Sho even more. Of course, she deserved to feel guilt ridden. But Sho wanted to see her eyes, to make sure that's what she felt. And he wanted her to see his and how hurt he was. He just wanted her to look at him.

"Here, Lieutenant," Katara said as she stood up and approached him. "Let me fix that black eye before you go."

Sho jerked back a bit as Katara raised a water-wrapped hand. She gave him a patient look and Sho made himself relax a little. The healing didn't hurt and was surprisingly soothing. Sho felt the tension release a little from his strained muscles. It was over before he knew it.

"There you go," Katara smiled. "Good as new."

Sho tentatively touched his eye and was amazed to not even feel a tinge of swelling or pain.

"Thank you," he mumbled.

Katara's smile changed and somehow became more real. "You're welcome."

Out of habit Sho turned to Sai Lin to ask her how he looked. But then he saw her with her head down and remembered his hurt all over again.

Katara cleared her throat. "If you'll excuse me, I think I want to get some air."

She touched Sho's arm firmly and as she went past Sai Lin she did the same to her. When she left a painful silence filled the room. Sai Lin shifted uncomfortably on her stool and Sho stared at anywhere but her. And then as he studied intently the grain lines of the table there was a shift in the air.

"It looks good."

Sho's head turned to Sai Lin. She looked at him with steady, clear eyes. Sho searched for guilt but if there was any Sai Lin had hidden it behind the formal mask she often wore.

"What does?" he asked.

She gave a tiny gesture. "Your eye."

Her answer took him aback. It wasn't fair. He shouldn't be hurting this much. He was a soldier, a warrior. He should have been tougher than this.

"Do you remember when we first met?" Sho asked as coldly as he could manage. "You told me you hoped I would find Faizin's killer. Why did you say that to me? To taunt me?"

Sho watched her severe face crack a little with emotion. "Yes, I suppose it was to taunt you."

Sho huffed and made to leave. Sai Lin's continuing answer stopped him in his tracks, though.

"I thought you were like all the other Fire Nation soldiers I had met. But…you're not."

Sho looked at her. She stared back at him with sombre eyes. "Be safe, Sho."

* * *

Katara stepped out onto the street. It was dusk and shadows began to creep across the town. Her morning arrival at the manor seemed like years ago. She would head up there soon to pick up her things and help the others sneak into the stables. Anticipation made her shiver despite the heat.

The land here was more elevated than in the market areas she had passed before. The homes were built on rock and the streets sloped upward. The people walking up the hill kept their eyes forward. Toward Kawayama.

The mountain dominated the skyline, stabbing through clouds and demanding attention. It certainly had Katara's. Her heart thumped in her chest as she gazed at it and the pressure of tears built behind her eyes. Aang was in there, somewhere. She could feel him tug at her like a lode stone pulling metal files. Katara took in a steadying breath and felt her tears subside. It would be soon now, she reminded herself. Tonight she would save Aang.

"Hang on, airhead," she whispered. "I'm coming."

* * *

"Careful with that keg, Sho," Oba said.

Sho grunted a response and shifted his grip on the keg carefully. He hoped it was just his imagination when he heard a slosh coming from the barrel. "Are we ready to go? Katara and Sai Lin will be waiting for us at the stables now."

"General?" Oba asked.

Khan leaned casually against the window frame, watching the street. "I don't see anyone."

"Then let's go," Oba decided.

They stepped into the dark night and kept to the sides of the boardwalk. It was not raining and to walk around with their hoods up in this heat would only call attention to them. Their trip to Oba's home had been a tense experience. Now Sho felt that tension treble with the added danger of the blasting jelly in his hands.

"How will we get in the manor grounds?" Khan asked quietly.

"There is a servants' entrance to the left of the main gates," Oba explained conspiratorially. "It is not nearly as well guarded as it should be."

"A back door, eh?" Khan murmured.

"After we are in we only need to make our way to the outer stables," Oba continued.

"How will you find the White Lotus in the dark?" Sho asked.

"Trust me, Lieutenant," Oba reassured him. "_They_ will find _me_."

"You there!"

All three of them froze at the call. Sho turned around a little and spotted two members of the Watch, torches in hand. Khan took a step toward them but Oba stopped him with a light touch.

"Be still, General," she whispered. "I'll handle this."

Oba walked over to the Watchmen and transformed herself into sweet, old woman that Sho had first met. "Good evening, sirs, good evening. What can old Oba do for you?"

"A bit late for you to be out and about isn't it, Grandma?" one of the Watchmen questioned. He turned to Sho and Khan. "You two, step forward."

"We run an urgent errand for the Governor," Oba said quickly. "It's best not to delay us."

"We will be judge of what's best," the other Watchmen replied sharply. "We told you two to come forward."

"Khan," Sho whispered urgently through gritted teeth.

"Steady, Sho," the General replied under his breath. "She has this."

"Of course, sir," Oba said in her treacly way. "I didn't mean to presume. It's just that we know how the Governor can be when things don't go his way."

The Watchmen looked at her. Oba gave a sweet, knowing smile. "We wouldn't want to be on the end of that, would we?"

The pause of reply from the Watchmen had to be the longest half a minute of Sho's life. Then:

"You're right," the first Watchmen said and Sho felt himself relax.

"But the Governor would understand," the second finished and stepped towards Sho and Khan, drawing his short-sword.

Oba acted swiftly, pulling a needle-like dagger from her sleeve and thrusting it into the base of the Watchman's neck. Khan was already moving, shoving Sho out of danger. Sho's face planted against the wall, his fingers grinding between the rough brick and the keg in his hands. He yelped and the barrel almost slipped from his fingers before he gained a tighter grip. There was a gasp and a cry from the fight but Sho only turned in time to see the outcome.

Khan stood over the body of the second Watchmen. The man's drawn blade was smeared in blood. Beside him, crumpled on the boardwalk was Oba. She did not move.

"Oba!" Sho gasped and ran to her, uncaring of the explosives in his hands.

Khan turned and dropped to her, pulling her closer. "Come on, you old bat!" he said gruffly, "No one dies unless I say so."

Oba's face was pale. Her dress was a bloody mess and her breathing came sharp and shallow. Her eyes found Khan's face and she smiled. "General."

"We have work to do, you old bat," Khan said. "You can't give up the ghost yet."

"I heard you were difficult," Oba replied weakly and her smile widened. She coughed a little and her breathing slowed. "They'll find you."

"What?" Khan asked.

"Don't you dare disappoint me."

"Oba!" Khan called.

But Oba was gone.


	15. The Best Laid Plans

**Chapter 15: The Best-Laid Plans…**

Katara stroked Appa's fur and watched the entrance of the stables anxiously. Sai Lin paced across the floor and turned her head in quick, furtive glances toward the courtyard. Something had gone terribly wrong; that was the only answer for why the others were so late. So far they had heard no alarms or saw any sign of movement outside but that didn't mean much to Katara right then. Who knew what was happening behind walls or closed doors? She felt Aang tug at her and shivered. Appa sensed her worry and chuffed. She gave a weak smile to the bison and buried her face in his fur.

"Soon," she whispered to him. "Soon, Appa. We'll find him."

"They're back!" Sai Lin called.

Katara spun around as the others entered the stables in a rush. When she saw them she relaxed a little. They didn't seem hurt. But then she counted them and her stomach clenched.

"Where is Oba?" Sai Lin asked.

Lieutenant Sho's head dropped and the General's face was grave.

"She's dead."

The General's flat words hit Katara like a punch in the gut. _Who will find the White Lotus now?_ As soon as the thought flitted through her head Katara pushed it away savagely. Someone had died and the least she could do was not to think selfishly for one moment.

Sai Lin made a noise, like something had been torn from her, and she dropped heavily to the ground. Katara went to her and held her by the shoulders. The girl shook but she made no other sound.

"How did this happen?" Katara asked.

"It doesn't matter anymore," Khan said gruffly. "We hid the bodies but it won't be long before someone finds them."

_Bodies?_ Katara decided she didn't want to know anymore of the details. "We need to go right now, then. Before anyone sounds the alarm."

"Agreed," Khan nodded. "Sho and I discussed it on the way here and we've decided that I will go find the White Lotus using your eelhound. I'll find them faster on the ground. Besides, Sho will need help if he's going to try and slow down this army. I hear Appa is quite the fighter."

"He is," Katara replied. But she knew that there was only so much that Appa could do to help Sho. In the end, he would essentially be on his own. She tuned to the Lieutenant and saw the understanding in his eyes. He knew what he would be getting into. He was afraid. But he also wasn't going to back down.

"Good luck, Sho," Katara told him solemnly. He nodded stiffly in reply.

Sai Lin stirred in her arms. "What?"

Khan turned to Sho. "You need to get going, Lieutenant."

"What?" Sai Lin called louder.

Sho nodded to Khan. Khan hesitated but then bowed stiffly. "Good bye, Lieutenant."

Lieutenant Sho looked shocked at the gesture but soon returned it. "Good luck, General."

Khan smirked. "Thankyou but I don't need it."

Sho watched him lead the eelhound out into the night. He set his shoulders and crossed the room to Appa.

Sai Lin jumped to her feet and ran to him. She grabbed his shirt. "No! Not by yourself!"

Sho frowned and pulled her hands away. "Let go of me, Sai Lin."

"No!" she cried out.

"Sai Lin," Katara called gently but firmly, "we need to leave."

Sai Lin ignored her. "You can't go by yourself, Sho! Please!"

Sho struggled with her writhing hands. "Someone will hear you!"

"I don't _care!_" She started to cry. "_Please_, Sho!"

Sho swallowed as he looked at her. "Appa will be coming with me."

"It won't be enough!" Heavy sobs escaped from her and she stopped fighting him. Her head hung low. "It won't be enough."

Katara watched as a Lieutenant's face struggled with controlling his emotions. Finally, as if fighting himself, Sho put his arms around Sai Lin and held her. Sai Lin shook as she cried and held on to him. Katara turned her head away, no longer able to watch. The tug from Aang felt stronger than ever and she surreptitiously wiped the tears from her own eyes.

"I'm sorry, Sho," she heard Sai Lin say. "_I'm sorry_. Please don't go. I'm sorry!"

"I have to do this."

Sai Lin's sobbing increased.

"Find the Avatar," Sho told her. "He's the only one that can stop the army."

"_Please don't go_."

"Sai Lin!" Sho cut through her. "Promise me you'll find the Avatar."

Katara heard Sai Lin begin to control her tears. "I promise, Sho."

Katara turned back to the two as she heard the Lieutenant begin to pull Appa out of the stable.

"Call 'yip yip', Sho," Katara told him, "and Appa will fly."

Sho nodded. He suddenly looked very young and very alone. Katara came over to him and hugged him. She felt the wet tear stains on his shirt. She pulled away and smiled at the surprise on his face. "Good luck, Lieutenant."

"You too, Katara," and gave a weak smile.

Katara turned to Appa and hugged him too. "Take care of him, buddy."

Appa snorted. In the distance alarm bells began to ring. Sho's head spun and he took a deep breath.

"Come on, then," he said to Appa and led him off.

Katara watched him go and then turned back to Sai Lin. Her face was red and tear-stained. Her face was blank of expression. Outside Katara heard the march of feet.

"Sai Lin?" she called. "We need to go now."

Sai Lin looked up at her and her blank features slowly hardened. "Yes, let's go."

They ran out into the night, carefully keeping to the shadows and avoiding those that were in the courtyard. Up ahead, Mount Kawayama was nothing but a dark shadow. As they ran towards it, it became ever bigger and more imposing. The tug from Aang felt like an ache in Katara's heart. But it would settle soon. She would find Aang.

* * *

Khan heard the ringing of alarms coming from the town and turned his mount to look back his view was mostly obscured by the trees but he caught its twinkling lights. He sighed and kept going. He'd done what he could to give the others a head start. It had surprised him how much it had affected him to throw Oba's body into the canal. He had hidden the bodies of others, soldiers and friends closer to him than she had been.

He flicked the White Lotus tile across his knuckles and kept an ear out on the sounds of the swamps. With Oba gone he was their best bet to find the White Lotus company she had said was out here. Somewhere. He could catch their vibrations in the ground, from kilometres away even, amplified by the water. Amplified vibrations were a pain when it came to catching individuals but a whole group together? Things were a different story.

After all these years, after refusing their offers of membership three times, Khan now found himself actively searching for the White Lotus. He smiled bitterly; the universe had a terrible sense of humour.

"_I know why you won't join the White Lotus Society_," Oba had said.

"_Oh?"_ Khan had sneered. _"Then please, do share_."

...

* * *

"_Ba Sing Se," Oba stated._

_Khan laughed at her. "I wasn't there for the fall of Ba Sing Se or its liberation. I was relaxing in a prison cell the size of a coffin."_

"_Oh?" Oba cocked an eyebrow. "And who put you there?"_

_Khan's face lost all pretence of mirth. "Be careful what you next say, woman."_

_Oba ignored his glare and continued. "It's a funny thing about the Siege of Ba Sing Se. Almost everyone remembers it as a giant failure for the Fire Nation. They forget that they had some victories along the Wall. I wonder how it feels, General, to have been captured in what was ultimately a complete defeat for the enemy? To have no one remember how hard you fought for those in the city? How many lives you saved?"_

_Sieges were supposed to be orderly affairs in war. The army all lined up prettily on the field of battle, ready to begin the occasional volley. There had been no such order when Khan had engaged with the sieging Fire Nation armies. It had been bloody madness exacerbated even more so by the Dai Li. They were constantly countermanding his orders, second-guessing his decisions and denying him authority over the troops. The people of Ba Sing Se never knew that the Fire Nation had come within an inch of breaking the Wall. In a last ditch effort to halt their progress Khan had declared one on one combat with the opposing army's leader. The Dragon of the West. Khan had fought like he had never done before, had given everything he had to gain a victory and cut off the sieging army at its head. But the Dragon of the West had prevailed. He had lost. And that had been the end of General Khan. _

"_I went in chains to the Fire Nation without a single one of those idiots in the City knowing how hard I fought for them," Khan said through gritted teeth. "And _the Dragon of the West_ runs away in defeat and his people _still_ revered him! I was in prison for six years because of that man. And when the War is over and I finally get my chance to get equal with the man I find out General Iroh is no longer the enemy. He's a _hero_ to everyone. Well damnation to that man! I will not bend my neck to him, not for any reason. I will _not_ forgive him!"_

"_I am not asking you to forgive him, General," Oba explained carefully. "Just to do as he did. Move on."_

* * *

...

Move on. How easy she made it sound. How difficult it was in reality. It had taken Oba's death for him to decide to approach the White Lotus. He did not like it but he would put aside his feelings for this. He would move on just as Oba had challenged him to. The end _would_ justify the means and the death of a friend would not be meaningless. It would _not_.

* * *

Katara and Sai Lin hid behind the trees and watched the entrance of the Kawayama underpass. There were two guards that Katara could see but Sai Lin said there were at least two more hidden from view.

"We could just walk up there," Katara suggested. "We've done nothing to make the town suspicious of us. Besides, I doubt the guards will even recognise me."

"They might not know you, but they know me," Sai Lin said. "And they'll wonder why I'm out here with a stranger rather than helping Tonshi move the army."

"Okay, then how do we get in?" Katara asked, her agitation starting to show.

"I'm working on it," Sai Lin muttered.

"Well, there's one way to get past them," Katara hinted darkly. She stood up and was about to stealthily make her way to the guards when Sai Lin suddenly yanked her back down.

"Look!" she whispered harshly.

Katara turned behind her and saw illuminated by the moon an army marching up the road. Their armour was mismatched and they carried no weapons but Katara still felt a chill. So this was the dual-bending army. From the shadows she and Sai Lin watched them pass.

"They're moving earlier than I thought they would." Sai Lin cursed under breath. "It must have been because they…they found the bodies."

Katara nodded. "Sai Lin, get up. I have an idea."

She pulled Sai Lin along through the trees keeping as far away from the road without losing sight of the army. The sound of three hundred moving feet was enough to dampen any noise that either of them made but Katara tried not to take any chances. Eventually they found themselves at the tail end of the army where the supply wagons were being pulled along by ostrichorses.

Katara smiled. "Perfect, they're not guarding their rear."

"That is foolish!" Sai Lin whispered fiercely. "Tonshi is an idiot! What if someone happened to come from behind them?"

Katara gave her a sidelong look. "Don't complain, Sai Lin. This is what's going to get us past those guards and into the underpass."

Sai Lin nodded but still looked annoyed at the army's sloppy security.

They snuck up behind one of the wagons and Katara pulled herself up and in. The wagon bed rocked slightly but the guard leading the ostrichorses didn't notice. She turned and held out a hand to Sai Lin. The younger woman took it and carefully pulled herself in alongside Katara.

The wagon was full of barrels. Katara sensed liquid inside them and felt slightly more at ease with a supply of bendables around her. If this all went sour at least she could fight her way out. As they neared the tunnel, Katara felt Sai Lin tremble beside her. She took the girl's hand; if it was little comfort then at least it made her own shaking less noticeable.

As they neared the tunnel entrance both women became still. The glow of torches passed by them and Katara and Sai Lin crouched further. Katara couldn't breathe as the torchlight lingered in front of them. Sai Lin shook beside her. Katara's hand went to her pouch, her thumb behind the stopper. Her heart thumped like a drum in her chest. She took a steadying breath as the torchlight drew closer.

The light flickered away. Katara relaxed and Sai Lin sagged against a barrel. Their wagon trundled on. They waited until the torches were just a dwindling light before they both carefully got out of the wagon.

Katara pulled Sai Lin behind a rock and they watched the army travel down the tunnel.

"Where are they heading, Sai Lin?" Katara asked quietly. "Where exactly?"

Sai Lin shook her head. "Tonshi never trusted me with all the details. They'll go through a few of the other colonies – Phutak, Bangcheng – gathering more to the army before heading to the closest military outpost." She watched them travel on for a moment more, her face unreadable, before shaking her head. "This way, Katara."

Katara followed Sai Lin down the way they had just come. They had only gone a short distance before Sai Lin led them to the edge of the road. For a moment Katara wondered where they were heading; there was nothing in that direction except the tunnel wall. But then as they neared closer an entrance, cleverly hidden by rocks, appeared. The door was rough-cut wood that blended nicely into the shade of the stones.

"Is this the only entrance?" Katara asked quietly.

"No," Sai Lin replied. "The mountain is riddled with tunnels that open out in many places. This one will likely not be guarded, though."

Sai Lin opened the door and standing immediately in front of them were two men. They turned around, began to smile at Sai Lin then started when they saw Katara. Instinct kicked in and Katara uncorked her water pouch and Pushed out a high pressure spray. Both men were knocked off their feet and crashed on to the floor, their heads bouncing once, twice.

Katara eyed them for a moment then straightened. She turned to Sai Lin with a flat look. The girl's mouth had dropped wide open.

"No guards, huh?" Katara asked peevishly.

"I thought they would all be with Tonshi," Sai Lin explained. "This is not good. We'll have to move more carefully now."

Katara shook her head. "There's no time left to be careful. Just show me the way to Aang. I'll handle anything that gets in our way."

For a moment it looked like Sai Lin would protest but then she caught the look in Katara eyes. Katara didn't know what she saw but she could begin to guess. Aang was so close and _no one_ was going to get in her way.

* * *

They opened the door and someone gasped. This man did not look imposing, not like the great leader he was meant to be. He was yellow-pale, his eyes had sunken and he smelt. Prickly hair grew on his head and across his face.

They called for him to stand. The man did not move. They hoisted him up, each one holding an arm. He came willingly. His spirit had been weakened, battered for such a long time. Now it was close to breaking.

They dragged him along, passed hallways that had once bustled with men and women. There was only a skeleton crew now. They took him passed these people and he hardly saw them.

They led him into a room and for the first time since the guards had come the man responded to the things around him. This place was familiar; the tables with their rough sheets, the bottles full of elixirs, the walls plastered and pinned with diagrams and notations. The man that sat on his chair and gave a pained smile.

The man in the guards' arms stiffened. He jerked reflexively. He pulled himself inward, away from the room. The guards held him still.

The seated man dropped his smile and sighed. "I'm…I'm sorry. I didn't want to do this yet. But I'm left with no choice."

He stood and went to the guarded man. "You _must_ understand. This _is_ for the best. You'll forgive me, Avatar?"

Aang raised his head and stared at Bokku. Bokku's eyes widened, his mouth opened and closed finding no words to counter that look. The healer gathered himself eventually and straightened. "Let us finish this."


	16. Heartbeats

**Chapter 16: Heartbeats**

Lieutenant Sho, hidden behind an enormous boulder, steadied his breath and waited. He had landed here in this valley approximately a half turn of the moon ago. Earlier he had found the closest military outpost to Yamamachi. It was an Earth Kingdom base. When he had tried to warn them things had not gone so well.

"_A _duel-bending _army?" the watchman scoffed. "Go back to your drink, boy, before I flog you."_

Sho had insisted that he was a lieutenant in the Fire Nation army and so the watchman had no choice but to bring him to his commanding officer. Sho felt his stomach twist in embarrassment thinking back on it. The officer had very politely listened to his whole story and even let Sho try and demonstrate his new earthbending. Of course, his earthbending had chosen that time not to work. At all.

"_Waste my time again with these crazy Colonists, Lao," the officer said, "And I'll have you cleaning latrines for a month."_

Unfortunately Watchman Lao had taken it rather personally out on Sho as he threw him out the barracks.

_Fine,_ he thought, _I didn't want them fighting anyway._ Katara had warned him that any conflict between the Colonist army and one of the outposts would be a declaration of war. But Sho could fight them. While he was under the jurisdiction of the Avatar in this investigation his actions were removed from the Fire Nation. He worked for the Avatar and as such he had free and full right to fight the enemy. And he planned to.

It was true that he was just one man. One man and a Sky Bison. But he couldn't dwell on the odds he faced; that was just down-right depressing. Besides, Sho thought he always fought better when the odds were against him. It gave him more of a chance to prove himself the warrior he so wanted to be. Maybe if he survived today he would finally have that proof.

He had found the valley shortly after leave the outpost. It was more of gully or ravine actually; the path narrow, the walls sloping sharply up. It was perfect place for him to engage the enemy. There were other routes to the outpost but the gully was the quickest one. The Colonist army could hardly expect to be attacked and they wanted surprise on their side. They would take the gully.

So Sho waited for them. He was up one side of the gully, hiding behind a huge boulder. He had instructed Appa to stay on the other side behind an equally large stone. It didn't quite cover the Sky Bison but hopefully it would be enough. Of course, Sho could have done something with his earthbending to help but he found he couldn't bring himself to try. He excused it by telling himself he didn't want to risk hurting Appa, that earthbent shelters would be obvious to the trained eye. But that wasn't it really. If he was honest with himself it was because he was afraid.

He stared at his hands. Even in the dark he could tell they were shaking. If he used earthbending, if he accepted it, what would that make him? Firebending and the Fire Nation were all he knew. He had never once doubted his nationality. Now what was he?

Appa sounded a warning growl that carried across the gully. Sho turned and squatted to watch. Ahead the unmistakably steady flames of firebenders glowed in the night. There were hundreds of them, a sea of people. Sho swallowed and tired to squash his fear. He was only wanting to slow them down not defeat them. He had to trust that Khan would find the White Lotus, that Katara and Sai Lin would free the Avatar. Someone would come for him.

The thought gave him little comfort as the army now began to wind its way into the gully. This was it. He pushed away his doubts as much as he could and stood slowly up against the boulder. He needed to time this carefully. Appa wouldn't move to help until he sounded the call. He was not sure how much the Sky Bison understood but he knew Appa relied on him to tell him when to fight.

The army marched through the gully, their hand torches lighting up the sloping walls. Sho crouched down further and counted in his head. Ten beats; that was how long he would give himself before he struck.

One. There had to be enough soldiers in the gully for him to make an impact on their numbers. Two. If he moved too late their numbers would overwhelm him. Three. Too early and the army would simply go another route. Four. Not before they killed him, though. Five. He could see their faces, men and women; young people his age. Six. The orange glow from the light made their face look like they were covered in blood. Seven. There was an animal grunt loud enough to be heard over the crowd. Eight. Soldiers turned and spotted something. Nine. Sho stood quickly and pressed his body against the boulder. Ten. There was no way he could do this unassisted. He had given something he never wanted. But he couldn't give in to fear. In moments like this you didn't question your assets. He breathed in. He couldn't be afraid. He couldn't.

He breathed in and Pushed.

"NOW!"

His voice echoed across the gully. He heard the responding bellow from Appa and the grating noise of falling rock. There were cries of alarm from the army that suddenly overlapped with screams. Sho didn't look but focused all his energy into Pushing his enormous boulder. It felt like he was trying to move it unassisted. Sweat popped out on his brow and his arms shook with strain.

"Move, damn you," he wheezed. "Move!"

The boulder had to join Appa's assault immediately to the army from regrouping. Sho pushed his whole body into moving the rock. He felt it shift beneath him slowly. He screamed and pushed harder. His whole mind cried out with one thought: _Push the flaming rock!_ The boulder moved again and gravity helped the rest of the way. The enormous chunk of rock hurtled down with speed, gaining momentum with every rotation. But Sho was shocked to see his efforts to Push the rock had a greater affect than he realised. Around him rocks of all shapes and sizes – though none as big as his boulder – tumbled down the slope.

Men and women dashed about in the gully, screaming and trying to avoid the crush of stones. Appa's boulder had landed in the gully bottom and Sho's joined it, Colonists dying beneath both. But the surprise of the attack only lasted moments. The soldiers regrouped and there was a loud bang as the first boulder was shatter into pieces. The Colonists lined themselves again, earthbent and shattered the second one.

Sho cursed. He had hoped the landslide would slow them more. There was still a chance for him, though. The soldiers turned their flames to the sloping walls of the gully. Sho smiled. He had laid some of his precious blasting jelly along the gully bottom. If an ember happened to drop down on some…

There was a roar. Sho flinched; it was not the roar he had been expecting. Appa bolted out from the burning gully-side and landed amidst the soldiers. His head flicked up and his great tail lashed out, flinging Colonists every which way.

But this was bad, this was so very bad. No matter Appa's strength those soldiers would kill him soon. They already flared their fire in his face, which only seemed to enrage him more. And what if one of Sho's blasting jelly landmines caught Appa in its explosion?

He had to do down there. But this was not part of his plan. If he went down among the soldiers his chances of survival would go from slim to none. A flying rock took Appa in his side. Sho watched in horror as the great animal's fur quickly slickened in blood.

That decided it. Sho could not let Appa die. Even if it meant his life it didn't matter. Appa belonged to the Avatar and anything precious to the Avatar Sho would defend. He slid down the gully-side, rocks skittering around him, and ran straight into the army.

* * *

Katara water-whipped at the man lunging at her with a knife before Pulling it back and slipping ice under the feet of three others. They stumbled as one and Katara rolled the ice and shoved them into a wall.

"How much further?" She questioned Sai Lin without turning her head away from the corridor.

"It's this room, here," Sai Lin replied and to a heavy stone door.

Katara sighed in relief and joined her. They had encountered a number of guards whilst searching for Aang. Katara took it as a good sign, though. It meant that he was here; she would save him soon. She frowned at the door; there was no knob.

"Great," she said flatly. 'How does it open?"

Sai Lin stared at the door, troubled. "I usually knocked and someone would let me in."

She reached her hand up but Katara caught it at the wrist. She pushed a confused Sai Lin out the way and Pulled water from her pouch. She Pushed the water into the thin gap between the door and its frame. She probed further and let the water seep into the tiny cracks in the stone door. . She Pushed into the stone as much as she could. And then she froze the water.

The door cracked and broke. Katara drew her water back quickly and Pushed it against the broken stone. The door fell inward in pieces. Katara stepped through the rubble and into the room. It was empty. That made a lump catch in her throat but she wouldn't let it stay. Aang was _here_. She turned to Sai Lin motioned for her to come.

Sai Lin eyed the broken door in awe before shaking herself and joining her. She looked around the room and seemed just as surprised to find it empty. Her eyes widened.

"Quickly!" and she hurried to the only other door in the room, this one wooden. When the door opened freely it disturbed the maid even more.

"Avatar?" she called and stepped into the room. Katara jumped past her and ran inside. She pulled back her head in revulsion immediately. The cell stank of sweat and urine. She looked at the cot that Aang must have slept on. It was filthy thing and made her mouth curl in distaste.

"You kept him _here_?" Katara hissed.

Sai Lin didn't have to answer her that. Katara felt herself grow furious. "Where is he?"

"If he's not here then there's only one other place he would be," Sai Lin replied gravely. "If I'm right then we don't have much time. Hurry!"

She bolted from the room and Katara ran to follow her. She tried to ignore the sinking feeling in her stomach but it was hopeless. There was something horrible up ahead waiting for her.

* * *

Sho ducked between two Colonists and dropped a spark to the ground. He ran as far from them as he could, pushing through the crowd. There was a sudden roar and a hot, forceful blow hit him in the back. Sho was knocked off his feet along with others. He turned his head back and watched flames shoot up into the sky. Around the explosion lay the bodies of Colonist soldiers.

Sho smiled grimly. That had been the second blasting jelly landmine he had managed to get off. Both had come in quick succession of each other so he'd managed to get away from both unnoticed. So far. He stood quickly, trying to ignore the new burns he'd acquired, and made to run to the next landmine he'd remembered placing.

His explosions were doing their work. More and more soldiers were being distracted from attacking Appa and turning to help their friends. Amidst the chaos he was making it was hard to spot one stranger in the flickering dark.

Someone grabbed his arm and heaved him backward. Sho stumbled and turned. In the burning light he came face to face with Tonshi. The man's eyes seethed with anger.

"You!" He shouted above the noise. "I thought I saw you! You think you can play game with me, Lieutenant? You think-?"

Sho punched him square in the face. Tonshi broke his hold and grabbed at his nose in pain. Sho ran searching the ground for a landmine.

"Ahh! Bo, kill him!"

The Lieutenant heard the command called out over the din. He glanced back and saw a hard-faced man chase after him. Bo threw fire at Sho who dispersed it. The Colonist then shifted the ground beneath Sho's feet. He stumbled forward and fell into another Colonist. The man turned in surprise but Sho grabbed him and swung him around, throwing him into Bo.

"Hey!" someone called and grabbed Sho. Sho threw his arms up and broke the hold.

"Someone grab him!" Bo shouted.

More hands reached for Sho and he fought to keep free of them. There was a cry of pain from Appa and Sho turned his head to the sound. A rock caught him in the back and threw him to the ground. A foot kicked him and Sho felt ribs break. His eyes caught sight of a landmine, a shining patch of ground just metres away. The ground heaved beneath him and a rock pillar punched him into the air. He landed heavily on his back, the wind knocked out of him. Bo and the others circled him. Beneath him, Sho felt something wet.

"Kill him," Bo commanded. "Burn the Fire Nation soldier."

The men shifted their stance and pulled back fisted hands. Sho held his breath and prayed.

The flames from their fists sparked, ignited by chi sourced from breathing. Any natural firebender of moderate skill could sense firebending before it sparked. Sho felt it and Pushed at the ground beneath him. He earthbent.

The ground threw Sho away at an angle. He rotated once through the air before the Colonists' flames hit the landmine that had been beneath him. The air concussed and threw Sho further. Behind him screams cried out and died suddenly in the flames.

He landed heavily, more ribs breaking, and rolled uncontrollably until he hit a rock. He panted and clutched his side, his chest radiating pain with every breath. On his back he looked up, the view of the army taken in upside-down; his dazed mind hardly cared.

Appa was still fighting, his surroundings lit up in a sea of flame. Apparently the Sky Bison had an aversion to fire. The Colonists figured this as well and poured more flames around Appa. Sho rolled onto his stomach and pulled himself up slowly. It was painful, terribly so. But Appa was still in danger and the Colonists were still whole, despite his bombings. There was still fighting to be done. He pushed himself forward into the foray. Above him the night began to lighten.

* * *

Sai Lin hurried down stone corridors, Katara at her heels. The Avatar had not been in his cell as she'd hoped. That left only one other place he could be. With Bokku. The thought made her stomach churn. It meant she had come too late to save him. It meant the deaths of people she cared about. It meant war.

Her path led them deeper and deeper under the mountain. Here it was cold, the walls slick and moist, the torches spaced further apart. The rushing sound of water echoed through the stone hallways. The underground current was actually further on but the corridors carried sound far.

"What is that?" Katara muttered.

"The water?" Sai Lin replied.

Katara frowned in concentration. "No. There's something else."

Sai Lin strained her ears. Yes, there was something; a babble of indistinguishable noise. It sounded like the chatter of crowds or the drumming of heavy rain. But there was something else to it, something that set her teeth on edge and made her skin prickle.

"What is that sound?" Katara asked, her tone marked with frustration.

Sai Lin rounded a corner and stopped.

The ground was flooded with water that hung around her ankles. It saturated the walls and leaked through large cracks in the stone. There was a colour to the water, a tinge to it that Sai Lin did not like.

"What is…?" Katara's voice trailed off as she Pulled the water up for a closer inspection. There was something crimson in the water.

Katara dropped the water hurriedly and dry-washed her hands as if she'd touched it.

"Blood," Sai Lin mumbled, her mind numbing in worry.

Katara's face brushed briefly into distress before she hardened it. "Come on!"

She ran down the corridor and through its bend. Her feet splashed up blood and water with each step. Sai Lin shuddered but followed after her. As they ran the water slowly began to rise and the babbling increased. The noise seemed to grate on Katara more and more. Angrily, she Pushed and the water parted and froze against the walls.

"What is that _sound_?" she demanded.

They rounded another corner and bumped into two more Colonists. Sai Lin yelped and Katara made to strike at them but the Colonists surprised them by pushing past them both and running off.

"Hey!" Katara yelled but the Colonists didn't stop. She kicked angrily and water froze higher up the walls. "What is going on here?"

"They looked frightened," Sai Lin commented quietly.

There was a shift in the babbling noise; a part of it grew closer. Another Colonist rounded the corner, yelping and running for his life.

"Stop!" Katara commanded. When the man didn't respond she froze water around his feet.

The man lurched forward and hit the ground. He pushed himself up quickly and grabbed at his frozen feet. "No! Let me go!"

"First tell me what happened!" Katara demanded.

"No! No! No!" the man dug his fingers into the ice, clawing with his nails.

"Tell me!" Katara shouted, pulling his hands away.

"Run away!" the man screamed. "He killed them! He killed _all_ of them! My friends-!"

He broke off and began sobbing. Katara pushed him further, though. "Who? Who did this?"

The man's sobbing made him almost incoherent. But one word was clear. "The Avatar…the Avatar…the Avatar…"

Katara backed away in shock. The man dropped down and clawed again at his feet, sobbing hysterically all the while.

"Aang wouldn't do this," Katara mumbled. She stared down the corridor, at the broken walls and the bloody water. "He doesn't hurt people."

The violence evident in the halls seemed to tell her otherwise.

"Aang?" she mumbled. Then louder, "Aang? Aang!"

And Katara raced down the halls and around the corner before Sai Lin could stop her.

The man babbled. That was the noise, Sai Lin realised with a shudder. It was peoples' screams echoing down the tunnelled halls. What had happened here? She knelt beside the man and laid a hand on his shoulder. The man shivered but kept digging at the ice.

"The Avatar…the Avatar…the Avatar…" he sobbed.

Sai Lin did not want to believe it. She had only known him for a short time but she felt Katara was right; the Avatar wouldn't do this kind of thing. He wouldn't.

"…rit…"

Sai Lin's ears pricked up. "What did you say?"

The man babbled on, unresponsive. Sai Lin looked at the man harder; he looked familiar… "Techi?"

The man stopped and raised his head. His eyes were wide with terror.

"Techi," Sai Lin said gently, "It's me, Sai Lin."

"…Sai Lin?"

She nodded.

Techi suddenly grabbed her by the shoulders and brought her close. Sai Lin gasped at the force of his grip. His breath reeked of a dry mouth.

"You can help him, Sai Lin," Techi said.

"What-?"

"You were friends, you talked, you were close."

"Techi?"

"The Avatar Spirit, Sai Lin," Techi said rabidly. "_He killed them with the Avatar Spirit_!"

Sai Lin went cold. For a moment she could hear nothing but her heartbeat. It thumped slowly, slowly, _slowly_. It almost stopped.

"_Katara!_"

Sai Lin stood up and ran down the hall.

"_Katara, stop!_"

She ran as hard as she could through the flooded corridors, leaving Techi far behind. As she travelled deeper underground the babbling sound grew louder, became distinct. The hallways echoed with screams.


	17. The Avatar State

**Chapter 17: The Avatar State**

General Khan turned his head to look back and saw nothing. He sighed; sentimentality could kill a man if he wasn't careful. And yet he couldn't help but worry for his…friends. He smiled at that; it had been a long time since he had ever thought of anyone as a friend. Truthfully, none of his current companions really qualified as such in his mind. In fact he still on occasion wished to kill one or two of them. But they had worked together so long now that he felt they warranted the term.

He did not bother making an account of the time his search had taken. But it had been long. Honestly, how difficult was it to locate a small band of armed seniors dressed in blue and white? They should have stuck out like a sore thumb. And even if visuals were a problem he should have been able to _hear_ them. Echoes in the water carried far and people grouped together should have been ringing alarm bells in the swamp. If he could just-

He felt cold steel on his neck. He shifted and felt the blade bite deeper.

"I would keep still, friend," said the voice of a man somewhere in the tree above him. It was soft and assured. "But it is only a suggestion."

"How very droll of you," Khan replied with a thick layer of sarcasm. "If you don't mind…?" and he plucked at his belt pouch.

When the scout didn't move his blade Khan took it for allowance and he pulled out the Pai Sho tile. When he flipped it up in the air the man evidently caught it. He was silent for a moment.

"What do you think, Oji?" the scout asked.

Khan rolled his eyes up and tried not to let his surprise show over there being _another_ scout. He couldn't even spot him despite knowing that he was supposed to be there.

"Enough dawdling," Khan growled to cover his shock. "Take me to whoever's in charge now."

"Where did you get this from?" the scout persisted.

Khan sighed in frustration. "I got it from one of your own. Oba."

That seemed to perk the scout's ears up. "Oba? We haven't heard from her in days. Where is she?"

"Dead," Khan told him flatly. "As will everyone else in this territory be soon if you don't call your friends together and start marching."

The sword-wielding scout paused for a moment before he pulled his weapon away and loped off. The other scout, the one Khan could not see before, dropped from the trees. He put a hand on the eelhound's saddle and looked up at Khan gravely. His features were familiar.

"My sister," he asked quietly, "she died well?"

Khan wanted to growl at him. There was no such thing as a good death in his book. But all he said was, "she died as well as anyone could hope."

Khan believed that, at least. A life given to prevent lives from being taken; what more could someone ask for?

* * *

Katara raced down the corridor, unmindful and uncaring anymore of the bloody water around her feet and the leaking cracks along the walls and the screams echoing in her ears. Her mind was focused on one thing only: Aang. A part of her knew how dangerous that was. There had been times before when such a mind set had driven her beyond reason. She had done things she later regretted then.

She shook her head. This time was different. Aang made all the difference and she was not going to lose him. Not again.

She came across a body floating in the water and stopped in her tracks. There were more up ahead, grouping in front of a steel door. Gingerly, Katara turned over the body at her feet.

It was desiccated. Katara drew her hand away in horror. She stared at the bodies around her. All of them, she realised, all of them were the same. And, short of a full moon, there was only one thing in the entire world strong enough to have done this. Her heart sank.

She approached the door, placed her hand against it. It thrummed beneath her fingers; something moved on the other side.

_Aang…_

Whatever had happened, it would not be Aang's fault. Bokku must have done something to him, hurt him in some way. She had to help him, had to save him. She breathed in sharply. She had to stop him.

Katara pushed the door open. The room inside was dark, the water high. Something bumped against her legs.

"Aang?" she called.

Eyes glowed at the far side of the room. Katara heard the door behind her shut.

* * *

Sai Lin furtively dashed to the corridor corner and cautiously poked her head around. The corridor to her right was empty. To her left it was just the same. Both paths seemed to go on forever. Sai Lin gave a frustrated sigh. It was impossible to tell which way Katara had gone. Sai Lin hardly ever went this deep under the mountain. The lower levels were mostly unexplored and even dangerous. She questioned why Bokku had brought the Avatar down here. Perhaps a part of him was aware that things would go wrong.

Sai Lin rubbed her forehead. That was likely wishful thinking. Bokku had been arrogant and confident in his skills. He probably came down here so that he wouldn't be disturbed. Either way, it left Sai Lin confused and disorientated. Which way to go, left or right? She glanced down both passages.

To the left the water seemed more agitated. Sai Lin stepped closer. There were water marks against the stone walls, as if something had splashed by. Sai Lin glanced back to the right. The water was still to that side, yet Sai Lin felt something was odd. She moved closer to inspect.

A scream echoed up the corridor behind her. Sai Lin swung her head back to the left passage. Did Katara go up there? She looked ahead again and felt her uncertainty slip away. Something was strange about this path. It was quiet and still, but the walls were cracked worse here and the water higher than anywhere else she had passed. Curiosity pulled her forward.

Another scream chased up behind her. This time she didn't look back. There _was _something up ahead, a door that had been hidden from her in the patchy torchlight. Sai Lin reached the door and felt a chill run up her back.

Spirits, what was she doing? What if Bokku was behind the door? What if it was the Avatar, crazed by his spirit? What if it was both? Monsters and all sorts could be behind the door and what was she? Just some non-bender girl, unarmed and totally unprepared. To walk through that door would be madness, complete and utter foolish _madness_.

She pushed the door open. Whatever lay beyond, lay beyond. She had a job to do.

There were no monsters in the room. There was, however, the Avatar.

* * *

Sho was dying. And not like those other near-death experiences he had had. Those times he had been only 'almost dying'. This was different. He had been burned, slapped, punched, kicked and beaten to exhaustion. And those were only the self-inflicted injuries. His shirt was in tatters, his chest, arms and face blistered. He had more broken ribs than he cared to count. Where his skin wasn't burnt it was lacerated. Blood dribbled in his eyes. He'd lost his shoes and to top it all off he was pretty sure his nose was broken.

He was at the far end of the ravine, catching a moment's breather. He propped himself up on a rock and surveyed his accomplishments. The ravine was in chaos. His blasting jelly land mines were starting to do their job, aided on by the Colonists' undisciplined use of firebending. Sho had only to blow up the first few before they had done the rest to themselves, trying to kill him and Appa. Appa was above them now, smacking the air with his great tail and knocking the Colonists' over like trees in a storm.

The sun was beginning to rise now. Soon the Avatar would come and put an end to the fighting. Or the White Lotus would come and help him. He had worked all night trying to stop the Colonist army; surely help was on its way soon. Because despite he and Appa's efforts, the Colonists still held and still regrouped to move forward. Even as he watched someone was shouting orders, calling for the cease of firebending. They were starting to understand how the land mines worked.

They drew into line and the back row began to pelt Appa with rocks. The Sky Bison had to retreat to a safe distance and the Colonists swiftly used the opportunity open to them. The front row Pushed and the ground heaved away from them. The wave of earth rushed forward, triggering the land mines ahead of the army.

Sho's mouth dropped in dismay. The way ahead was now clear for them. All that effort he had done and in the end it all came to nothing. The Colonist army would march on.

Appa landed beside Sho at the ravine's exit. Behind them was the path to the Earth Kingdom outpost. Sho could not let them pass through.

"Ideas, Appa?" he asked the Sky Bison.

Appa only grunted. Sho noticed the sores on the animal's hide and his marked panting. Appa was just as tired as he was, if not worse. Sho patted him gently. "Go on now, Appa. There's nothing more you can do."

Appa roared at the approaching army and held his ground. Sho smiled at his courage, wishing he could be just as brave. The sun rose behind the army as the front row pulled into stance again. Sho pushed away from his support and raised his arms up, left open hand forward, right closed fist pulled back.

No one was coming, he realised. He was going to die. But at least he wouldn't die alone. "Thank you, Appa."

He eyed the army. _Why wait?_ he thought. No matter his new heritage, he was a firebender at heart. Sho ran to meet the army, doing what firebenders did best; offence.

* * *

Sai Lin ran to the Avatar. He lay on his back, floating in the water, eyes closed.

"Avatar!" She shook him. "Avatar, wake up!"

Water fell across his face she realised she was crying. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she pulled him to her. She had come too late. The Avatar had needed her and she had come too late.

"Avatar, please wake up!"

There were no wounds on him that she could see. She put her ear to his chest and heard nothing.

"No. No, not this," she mumbled. "Please, not this."

His skin was dark and colourless. She slapped his face and his cheek did not redden.

"Please, no," she cried. "Don't be dead!"

He was lifeless, empty, like a spiritless doll. Sai Lin looked at him and wept.

"I'm sorry," she mumbled through her tears. She brushed his face gently. "I came too late. I'm sorry."

She held him close and cried into his shoulder. "I'm sorry, Aang."

She almost jumped out of her skin when his arm came up and hugged her. She pulled away in shock.

"Aang?"

He smiled at her. "Hello, Sai Lin."

She gasped and held him again. "You're okay!" she cried. "You're okay!"

Aang choked a little in her grip. He pushed her off gently. "I'm hardly okay, Sai Lin," he said gravely. "Bokku has the Avatar Spirit."

"I think it's worse than that, Aang," Sai Lin said, "if the blood in the water is anything to go by."

Aang raised an eyebrow in confusion then looked at the water they were sitting in. He recoiled, suddenly, in understanding. Sai Lin helped him stand.

"I have to stop him, Sai Lin," Aang said. "I have to save him. The Avatar Spirit will tear him apart. And when that happens I'll lose it forever. The Avatar cycle will be broken, Sai Lin. I _can't _let that happen."

Sai Lin's face resolved into action. She put Aang's arm over her shoulder and helped him walk. "Then we must hurry. Katara's down here somewhere, too, and in her current frame of mind I'm hoping we find Bokku before she does."

Aang's face dropped and he stopped short. "Katara is _here_?"

* * *

Katara eyed the man that was once Bokku. Faint glimmers from green Earth Kingdom ore gave enough light to make him out. She wasn't sure she didn't prefer the dark.

He stood rigid amidst the wreckage of the room. It was difficult to make out what was in the flotsam. There was wood and furniture broken up around him, a chair and what might have been a table. There were sheets and perhaps a mattress and a bag. The flotsam gently swirled around him. His hands twitched, his body trembled. He was tension wrapped tight in skin, a coiled spring waiting to burst. His eyes glowed and streamed light and the sight struck a chord in Katara. That light didn't belong to him; it was stolen. Rising through her fear Katara felt her anger well up. How dare he. Where was Aang? What had he done to take the Avatar Spirit away from him? How _dare_ he.

"Bokku," she called, her voice tight with anger.

He turned to her, blinked.

"Bokku, what have you done?"

He cocked his head. The water around him stirred. "Katara?"

Katara shuddered when she heard the myriad voice of the Avatar Spirit. It was wrong on every level, it made her skin crawl. "Let go of the Avatar State, Bokku. It doesn't belong to you."

Bokku raised his hands up to his face and stared at them, seeing something Katara could not. "It's…it's age and time and memory, Katara; life infinite and beyond. I see everything, from the past lives of countless millennia to the life force connecting you to me. It is unimaginable."

"You can't control it, Bokku," Katara said. "Let it go."

The water more agitated, the flotsam spun quicker. Katara felt the drag on her legs and fought against stumbling.

"I…," Bokku stammered and blinked. "I can't let it go. If I release it, it'll fly free into the world with no anchor, lost forever. Such power, Katara, such knowledge. I can't let it go."

"You've hurt people, Bokku," Katara said, unmindful of his changing temperament. Her voice hardened. "If you don't release the Avatar Spirit I'll make you."

"I can't," Bokku said, an edge taking hold of his myriad voice. "_I can't let it go_."

The water became a whirlpool. Katara lost her balance and fell into the swirl. The room's walls shook and cracked. Grit and stone feel around her. Katara was knocked into a broken cupboard and got tangled in linen sheets. Something cut at her, hidden broken glass under the torrential flow.

Katara Pushed, a great heaving effort and the water around her violently thrust away. She stood up and pulled herself out of the offending sheets. The force of the water pushed itself against her bending. Katara spun and slingshot the flow at Bokku.

The torrent crashed into him. He tumbled over himself, falling backwards. Katara continued the pressure on him. But the man stood somehow, his hands holding back the water flow. Katara watched in shock as he knocked the water blast back at her.

She parted it and sent it shooting back at Bokku, this time as ice shards. Bokku raised his hands again and the flying projectiles melted away. He Pushed and the water became sliver thin needles of ice. Katara Pulled water up as a shield but the needles shot through. They tore at her clothes and her skin.

Katara Pushed and threw flotsam at Bokku, her arms swinging wildly. He knocked away her strikes but she kept at it, missile after missile. Wood flew through the air, exploding and shattering against walls and water. The water around Bokku moved like a snake, controlling and redirecting everything Katara threw at him. She tried to Pull at his own defences, to sweep him with the water under him. But it was like he was glued to the floor and couldn't be budged.

Bokku threw a rock back at Katara that she had slung towards him. It connected and knocked her sideways. Then suddenly he Pulled and Katara felt something tug inside her. Panic ripped through her and she flung water and sheet ice at Bokku. The combination threw him off and he stumbled under her blow. The tugging inside Katara ceased but terror still hung at the edges of her mind. Images of desiccated men and women outside the room flashed in her eyes. She shuddered.

Bokku straightened and Katara felt fear rise like bile in her throat. There was nothing human in the look he gave her. She watched, horror paralysing her, as he raised his arms again, hands reaching out toward her, _in_ her.

Bodies drained of fluid; it was ripped away from them.

_Oh, Spirits!_

Katara ran. Behind her Bokku began to Pull.

* * *

The whole mountain heaved. Aang felt Sai Lin stumble and stopped himself short to keep her from falling. Rubble fell from the ceiling, the walls cracked before their eyes.

"What was that?" Sai Lin asked, frightened.

Aang looked around warily. "Nothing good. Come on."

They began to run along again, Sai Lin supporting Aang in a loping trot. A part of Aang could still sense the Avatar Spirit. It was like a beacon calling out to him. And it was very close.

"Aang," Sai Lin puffed beside him, "when we find Bokku, how do you plan on taking back the Avatar Spirit?"

"I'm still working on that," Aang replied quietly. Bokku's poison ran thinly through his veins but it still blocked Aang off from his elemental bending. But even without that, Aang felt a dread. What if with the Avatar State gone he had no bending at all except air? Either way, few options were left open to him.

There was another quake. The ceiling above them crumbled.

"Sai Lin, look out!"

He pushed her out the way as stone and rubble fell on to the path ahead, splashing water everywhere. They stared at the falling debris.

"What's causing this?" Sai Lin said. "The Mountain's not normally this unstable."

"Do you really want an answer to that?" Aang asked.

Sai Lin's face paled a little and she helped him stand up. "Bokku's a rational man, why would he want to bring the Mountain down?"

"Bokku's likely not in his right mind," Aang replied, carefully navigating through unsteady ground. He suddenly grinned. "Besides, I have a wild theory that Bokku's been having a bit of a hard time lately."

Sai Lin stared at him as they rounded a corner. "You mean-?"

Before Aang could hear her finish someone barrelled into him. They tumbled over each other, a tangle of limbs, before Aang's back hit the water and the other fell on top of him. Aang looked up at Katara and an emotion welled up in him that he couldn't describe even if he tried. He smiled at her. "Hey, we were just talking about you."

Her face widened in shock "AANG!"

There was an explosion. Katara yelped and dragged Aang up with her. She grabbed hold of his and Sai Lin's hand and took off at a run, pulling them along.

"No time to explain," she shouted, "we need to run!"

Aang heard Sai Lin squawk and turned his head back. He felt his jaw drop and his hand slipped away from Katara.

Bokku charged at them on a wave of water. His eyes burned with the glow of the Avatar State. Aang saw him as a blinding haloed figure, a force beckoning him toward it. The Avatar State called to Aang. Bokku's outstretched hand flicked and Aang felt a Pull inside him. He heard a voice shout out but he ignored it and took a wiling step forward to the healer.

* * *

Katara felt a hand slip out of her grasp.

"Katara," Sai Lin called. "It's Aang!"

They both turned to see Aang no longer with them but walking up to Bokku. He seemed oblivious of the hand Bokku had reached out to him, Pulling at his innards.

"No!" Katara screamed and ran back for him. Bokku's hand began to close into a fist; he almost had Aang.

"Aang!"

Her hands stretched out toward them. Her Push was powered by terror. The tidal wave of water tore through the cracked stone and tossed both men back.

* * *

Sai Lin watched as Katara ran on water. She didn't think the waterbender knew she was doing it. Katara skidded and threw her hands forward in a Push. Bokku and Aang were cast away by her thrust. Unfortunately, she blew out the torches also. The crumbling stone corridors plunged into darkness.

"Katara!" Sai Lin called. "Aang!"

"Sai Lin!"

That was Katara's voice.

"Katara, where-?" Sai Lin suddenly fell as the water around her legs was Pulled. She was dragged along by a ripping tide, tossed and bashed into walls and debris. When the Pulling stopped and she could stand Sai Lin had lost all sense of direction. She thought she was bleeding from somewhere, it was hard to tell.

Complete blackness stretched around her. Her heart thudded in her chest. Panic inched up her spine. If she called out who knew what would reply?

She began to creep her way forward, one hand pushed out into the dark, the other guiding along the wall. She took a step and then another, eyes wide, ears picking up the creak and crack of stone, the lapping of agitated water. She trembled in fear and shivered with wet and cold.

Her outstretched hand bumped into soft skin. She screamed as a hand reached out to grab her.

"No!" she shouted and pushed away.

"Sai Lin? Sai Lin, it's me, Aang."

"Aang?" her body sagged from released tension. Then she stiffened again when she remembered that Bokku was still with them. Somewhere. "I'm frightened, Aang."

She felt him take hold of her hand. Another reached out and touched her shoulder. "I know."

Sai Lin felt herself on the verge of tears but she sniffed them away.

"Sai Lin," he continued. "I need your help. But it's going to require a little more bravery from you."

Sai Lin swallowed and steadied her nerves. "What do you need?"

* * *

The man that once was Bokku straightened and stared down at Katara. The glow from his eyes let him see her in the water, face up. A lump was swelling up from her brow from where he had knocked her unconscious.

His mind had been fractured. Most of him felt nothing looking down on her. But a part of him, tiny and dying, screamed at him. It wailed and cried but he could no longer understand it. He wondered idly if that was important somehow.

Pieces of the universe drifted into his vision. The cosmos revealed itself to him. Bokku raised his hands to his face and watched as they streamed life force. He looked up and saw his fragmenting mind break up and begin to scatter like dust in the wind. It hurt so much. Images and faces tore away from him. He watched memories float free in the air. Only some of them were his own.

"Bokku!"

Bokku looked at Aang. He was held up by a trembling girl, someone Bokku once knew.

"Bokku, this has to stop."

The Avatar was a beacon of light in the dark corridors. Bokku felt the spirit inhabiting him drawn to that light like a moth.

"Avatar, I can't. I can't let it go."

And yet the Avatar Spirit was ripping free from him even as he spoke. Pieces of countless lives were tumbling away from him. He took a wobbling step toward Aang. The girl holding him up murmured something but Aang gently pushed away from her.

"Let me help you, Bokku," he said. "Give it back to me."

As he lost his mind the screaming voice grew louder, its meaning clearer. Images of people, water torn from their bodies, begging for help, flashed through him. It hurt so much. He began to weep.

They stood face to face with one another, just him and the Avatar. The girl was gone, Katara was gone. He was so young, the Avatar. And so old.

"I can see you, Avatar," Bokku whispered. "Life and death. I can see it all."

Bokku looked up at the drifting pieces of his own life and saw only death.

"Forgive me," he mumbled as he watched the pieces scatter. "Forgive me, Avatar."

A hand was placed on his heart and another on his head.

"I forgive you."

The world was enveloped in light.


	18. Remembering the Old Saying

**Chapter 18: Remembering the Old Saying**

Sho's body was falling apart around him. Blood stung his eyes and made it difficult to see. That only added to his altered gait. His run was no more than a hobbling shuffle, his right leg, he unwillingly admitted, well broken. His hands jerked and sputtered with flame on and off as the last of his chi burnt up. He was facing an army of hundreds on dead legs. But he didn't care, for he wouldn't die alone.

Appa flew above him, racing for the front line. The Colonists threw volley after volley of rock and fire his way but the great animal ducked and spun through them. He flapped his great tail and ascended out of their reach.

"Go, Appa!" Sho cheered.

And Appa flew, higher and higher. He bellowed a mighty roar and sped forward. Across the army. Beyond them.

"Appa?" Sho slowed his shambling run. Appa was flying, not towards the army, but past them. He…he wasn't going to fight. "No."

The army raised their voices in triumph. Sho barely noticed their running advance on him. Appa was becoming a flyspeck in the distance, heading for Mount Kawayama.

"But…" Sho stuttered, "We were going to…I was…"

His body shut down on him suddenly. Sho slumped to his knees.

Someone was coming at him. Sho looked up.

Governor Tonshi. He'd drawn a blade. He was raising it. His face was blood-framed and grotesque in its victory.

Sho could not find it in himself to care.

* * *

Khan ran to the top of the hillside and looked down the gully. Dawn cut across the sky. He covered his eyes from the glare and felt his gut clench at the sight below. Oba's brother, Oji, came up beside him and hissed through his teeth.

The gully was pockmarked with black blast sites. There were a score of bodies on the ground; some looked blown to bits, others it was harder to say what happened to them from a distance. Sho was easy to spot; one lone man kneeling before a seething, angry mob. And Tonshi, that murderous scum, stood above the Lieutenant, raising his sword for a killing blow.

"Bow!" Oji shouted. "Now!"

Someone threw him a horned bow and quiver. Oji took aim. Tonshi's blow was already falling, though. Oji would not shoot in time. Khan took an involuntary step forward, his mouth open to scream.

The explosion that rocked the ground cut the words from his mouth.

Sound followed; a roar, crackling and thunderous as it punctuated the air. Khan grabbed at a spindly tree, trying to steady himself. His head swung round, trying to find where this new danger came from. It was not hard to spot.

Mount Kawayama, its peak in perpetual cloud, had erupted. But it was not lava that blew from its top. Ethereal white-blue light struck the sky, a pillar of raw power. It pulsed once, twice and then began to fade.

The silence among the army was profound, even as the earth continued to rumble. All eyes were fastened to the peak, breath held.

Another explosion, raw, painful and vast. There were no celestial lights this time, just molten rock and lava. It spewed out ferociously and descended like a nightmare onto the Colonies.

"Great Spirits," Khan said, awestruck in horror at the sight.

The lava flowed down, thicker and faster than any river. Trees were set alight, rock cracked and tumbled down, the air hissed with heat.

A cry rose up from the army. The sound of it was anguish and hopelessness. Men and women, blood and mud-stained, cried and heaved in anxiety. Khan shook out his shock and turned to the White Lotus around him. "We need to get down there quickly. It's going to take all of us to save the Colonies."

They scrambled down the hill, hardly gaining the attention of the grief-struck Colonists. Oji ran beside Khan, his eyes wide. "Didn't you say the Avatar was in that mountain?"

"Don't remind me," Khan growled.

* * *

Sho watched Kawayama tear itself apart. Above him, Tonshi's blade had fallen from his hand. His thin, bloody face was agape.

"Bokku," Tonshi's voice was leaden and numb. "You said you were ready. You said-"

Sho's bitter laugh cut him off. The Acting-Governor looked back at him.

"You should have listened to the Avatar," Sho said through blood-stained teeth. "This is your fault."

He spat a wad of blood at the man's feet. Tonshi's eyes went wide at first then his whole face contorted into rage. With a wordless scream he pulled a dagger from his belt and lunged at Sho.

It wasn't two bodies that collided, but three. Khan stood up and pulled Tonshi to his feet. He held the man by his collar.

"Listen, you pigass," Khan said. "It's over. Call your army back. The Colonies need you."

"Never!" Tonshi screeched. "Down with the Fire Nation! Death to the Earth Kingdom! Down-!"

Khan slapped him hard enough to knock the man unconscious. "My thoughts exactly."

Sho laughed a little and his laugh descended into a cough. Something hot welled up inside him. It wasn't chi. He looked down at himself. There was a bloody mess across his shirt. "General…"

Khan threw Tonshi aside and grabbed Sho as he slumped over. "Easy lad. I've got you."

Khan pressed a hand to Sho's stomach. He gasped in agony. Beyond he could see men and woman running about. Some were clad in white and blue. There was something important about that but he couldn't recall what. The Colonists looked scared and helpless even as those strangely garbed elderly folk tried to calm them. Mount Kawayama's blowing top imposed itself on the sky, spewing rock and fire. The breaking dawn was lost in a haze of ash.

"The Avatar…" Sho slurred through a blood filled mouth.

Khan glared at him. "Can't you think of anyone else but him?"

"Sai Lin…"

Khan grunted. "Hardly an improvement."

* * *

Khan would be damned if he let another friend die in his arms. He picked up the Lieutenant and ran to the nearest White Lotus member. The man looked harried, barking orders to the Colonists.

"You!" Khan shouted. "Where's a healer?"

The man barely flicked him a glance. "Sutari. Northern Water Tribe woman. Good luck finding her, though, General."

The man hurried off, urging the Colonists back. They had begun to turn now, charging for the towns. Khan could hardly blame them for their desire to save them but he knew it was useless. They wouldn't get back in time to stop the lava flow from hitting the Colonies. It was a doomed effort.

Sho groaned in his arms. He sighed; doomed or not, it didn't matter. You still had to try.

"A Water Tribe woman, eh?" he muttered. He looked around at the rushing returning army. "Can't be that hard to spot. Shall we join them, Lieutenant?"

Any reply Sho might have said was lost in the rumble of the mountain.

* * *

Yamamachi and its neighbouring town, Phutak, bubbled with chaos. As the first flows of lava began to slink through the streets panic erupted. Wooden boardwalks went up in flames, the floodwaters beneath evaporating into steam. Rock tumbled down and smashed into homes. Wooden stilts shattered into splinters as boulders tore threw them. People ran and, like a heaving wave, pushed and shoved to get away. Many fell in the rush, some under feet, others into the boiling water. The ground shook sporadically and threw people down. Ash, smoke and terror were thick in the air.

The retreating Colonist army ran headlong into the fleeing citizens of Phutak. There was a screaming collision of opposing forces as the army tried to force its way through. It would take a long time, though, before the army would manage to push toward the town. Khan rode on his eelhound, head and shoulders above the milling throng. He had Sho slumped across the saddle, his hand pressing against the Lieutenant's wound. With the other hand he pushed the eelhound through the mob.

From his height Khan spotted a clearing with people circling anxiously around it. Hopeful he made his way toward it.

In the centre of this clearing was White Lotus woman. Her tied-back grey bun was falling apart, but she worked furiously, sleeves up, her hands wrapped in water.

"You Sutari?" Khan asked.

She nodded without looking up. "If you're injured, line up. I have many already waiting."

Khan looked at the people surrounding her. They were ash-stained, cradling broken bones, or skin livid with burns. He grimaced. "This is an emergency woman. My friend needs attention immediately."

"I have many emergencies."

"Now!" Khan barked.

Sutari brushed a strand of hair from her eyes and looked up. She cast a stern, practiced look across Khan then glanced at Sho. With a sigh she approached the Lieutenant and eyed his wound. Her water-wrapped hands passed over Sho, delving. After a moment she sighed again and pulled her hands away.

"I can do nothing for him," she said in a voice devoid of emotion.

"What?" Khan demanded.

Sutari shook her head. "If it was only the stabbing wound I might have been able to treat him. But he is riddled with injuries, all of them sapping away at him. He is long past help."

Khan grabbed at her roughly as she turned to go. "You didn't even try, woman!"

"I will not waste energies on the living dead, General! I am stretched thin as it is!" she shouted sternly. Her eyes softened a little then and she continued in a gentler tone. "I'm sorry."

Khan glared at her unable to speak. Beneath his hand he felt Sho's blood trickle out of him. The General hardened his mind. "If you will not help him I will find someone who will."

"I am the only healer in our company, General," Sutari replied. "And I'm afraid none of these Colonists are waterbenders."

"I know where one can be found," he replied quietly.

Sutari looked confused for a moment then her eyes widened. "You cannot, General! Kawayama is a burning mess. Even if the Avatar and his friends got out of the mountain there is no way to reach them. General, come back!"

But Khan had already turned his eelhound and kicked at its flanks. The beast sped forward, leaping over the crowd if it could not push through them. The General bent low over the animal's body, willing speed. He was all too aware that if this gamble did not work, then it would not just be Sho that died; it would mean his life too.

As Khan entered the burning town his eelhound bucked beneath him in fear. He pushed the animal forward, though, merciless and cursing. Sho didn't even stir as ash and sulphur burned the air. That was a worrying sign but Khan could hardly give it attention. He needed to find Katara. Spirits, he'd take Bokku, any Waterbender at all, at this rate. He knew he was being foolish, knew that what he was doing went above and beyond what was necessary for a friend. But he did not care.

A collapsing boardwalk sent his eelhound rearing. The fell into the boiling, muddy water. The eelhound screamed and thrashed about. Cursing, Khan hoisted Sho over his shoulder and Pushed with his feet. The ground heaved up beneath them, drawing them out of the water. The eelhound shook itself jerkily. It shuddered and wobbled on its feet. Khan panted, his skin writhing in pain. Sho moaned but did not move. The General took a deep breath and steadied himself, focusing his will on pushing the pain away. He moved on quickly, though, not waiting for his pain to fully subside, not even waiting for the eelhound to recover. He dug in his heels and savagely kicked the animal onward.

Yes, what he was doing was above the norm. But Khan always knew he was above the norm. A burning missile crashed in the house in front of them, exploding it in a shower of debris. Shards and splinters of rock and wood whistled threw the air. Khan's reflexes hand him kicking up a stone barrier. But a piece of wood, as long as his arm, impaled the eelhound's upper left thigh. The creature dropped like a sack of rocks, Khan and Sho tumbling off of it. Khan got up, wincing in pain. Picking up Sho took enormous effort, the lad a dead weight that pressed on his burns. He eyed the pitiful animal, sides heaving and lathered where they were not burned and blistered. The wood had pierced deep into muscles, pushing its way into the ribcage. Khan showed it mercy finally, his face grim as he crushed the eelhound's head with a stone.

He shifted the weight on his shoulder he watched the creature's twitching die away. A mercy shown for animals but not for the man he now carried. He turned and started running as best he could through burning Phutak. Some might have said his actions came from guilt, others, pride. Khan knew it went beyond that. Sulphur weakened his steps even as the trembling ground betrayed his footing. But he stumbled on.

It had started in the jungles of the Fire Nation, with hard lessons learnt in a bloody guerrilla campaign. It had grown in the Siege of Ba Sing Se. and then it had changed – he had thought irreversibly – in the prisoner of war camps, his last few months spent in solitary. What had once the driving power in his life had become another means to survive; that the end would justify the means. But this assignment had stirred old feelings he long thought forgotten.

He reached the edges of Mount Kawayama and collapsed before its face. The underpass had caved in. Given time he might have been able to clear a way through. But he had no time. He pulled Lieutenant Sho off his shoulder and stared hopelessly at his deathly pale face.

The old feeling had stirred awake at meeting this boy. A boy young and eager but, most of all, one who didn't give up. He remembered watching the Lieutentant stand on shaky feet, ready to continue fighting after Khan had made a mockery of him during Agni Ki. It grew more at the sacrifice of one elderly woman for two men she hardly knew. And finally the obvious fight Sho had put up to stop an army of hundreds from starting a war had set it ablaze in his heart.

Or so he had thought.

Something black and smoky poured from the mountain's top. It rushed down the mountain, faster than a river rapid. Khan's stomach clenched. The Black Fog. Everything it touched would turn to ash. Even now, what had been left of the mountain's forests were engulfed and destroyed.

"I'm sorry, lad," Khan said and stood up, holding Sho in his arms. "But let's at least go on our feet."

The Black Fog was just seconds away. Khan faced it, immovable as stone.

And then the Avatar arrived.

He dropped down from a roaring Appa, his descent padded by Airbending. He landed metres in front of Khan, his arms stretched in from of him. Khan watched as the Black Fog reached him and cried out. But the Avatar's tattoos glowed once and then he Pushed.

The Black Fog parted around them with ferociously terrible force. Khan fell to his knees, overwhelmed by the hurricane gale of fire and smoke and him in the eye of it. He barely noticed Appa land as the Avatar shot upward, Pulling the Black Fog with him. It funnelled into a mighty swirling vortex above him as he drew all of it up. And then he Pushed once more and the Black Fog dispersed and diminished into nothing.

Still in the air, the Avatar Pulled at the ground. The strain was enormous and Khan could see his face purple even from a distance.

"Katara!" he shouted.

Khan spotted the Waterbender as she too began Pulling. For a moment the General wondered at their actions but suddenly the Mountain rumbled and shook again.

Aang and Katara shouted with the effort before Mount Kawayama finally burst its top again. But, squinting in disbelief, Khan realised it was not fire that came from it, but water. A torrent erupted from the Mountain, a river. It gushed out, extinguishing fires, cooling the ground and air.

A cheer rose up from somewhere. Khan turned grinned, "You're late, you stone-soled idiots."

The Colonist army and the White Lotus were finally marching through the town. They worked to clear the rock and fire but one and all raised a shout for the Avatar. Aang turned, slumped and weary, and waved to them.

Katara was rushing toward Khan now. And Sai Lin. They're movements seemed time-slowed and languid in the General's shock-numbed mind. The image of a bone-weary and sickly looking Avatar breaking apart the Black Fog rolled over in his head. He laughed. And then he cried. His old strength was back; his spirit that he thought broken into something horrible in the war camps had revived. The belief of the end justifying the means faded away, like an old scar. He smiled; he had always liked his old motto better anyway.

To never give up without a fight.


	19. The End of Doubt

**Chapter 19: The End of Doubt**

Katara woke as the sunlight broke through the bedroom's curtains. She stretched tiredly and sat up in bed carefully. Actually, it wasn't so much a bed as a bed roll, itchy and threadworm. She might as well have been sleeping on the ground. Still, it was more than some had in Yamamachi of late.

She stretched and scratched at her head, yawning away the edges of sleep from her mind. She turned to look at the other side of the bed roll and sighed. It was empty, hardly even looking slept in. It had been about a week since Kawayama had erupted. Aang hadn't seemed himself since then. Of course, he had _acted_ like his old self but Katara knew him better than others. He laughed little and smiled less. He often went off by himself, for hours sometimes. He was so still at night that Katara often held him just to know he was still there.

Katara knew she shouldn't be surprised by his behaviour. Aang had told her everything of his abduction that first night she had him back. He spoke in drab, blunt whispers and Katara had cried and cried with every word. He had held _her_ then, as if she was the one that needed comforting. No, Katara wasn't surprised. But that didn't mean she wasn't aching with worry for him.

There was a knock on the door. Katara sighed and pulled her eyes away from the empty bed. "Yes?"

"Mistress?"

Katara squirmed a little at that title. 'Mistress' sounded so _old_. "Yes?"

"Breakfast, Mistress," the servant said through the door. "And a message."

Katara hurriedly put on a robe and opened the door. A deceptively docile manservant stood in front of her, holding a tray of food. It was only simple food – rice and fruit – but it was better than most were getting nowadays. She let the servant place the tray down in her room; she knew better than to try and help him out. The people of Yamamachi were pricklier than most people, sharing both the pride of the Fire Nation and the stubbornness of the Earth Kingdom. At times it was not a pleasant combination and it was best not to test their temperaments too far.

"The message?" Katara asked as she dug into her rice bowl.

The servant bowed again. "White Lotus patrols state the Fire Lord will be arriving by this morning."

Katara nodded her thanks and the servant left. They had been expecting Zuko for some time now. Aang had practically sent a messenger hawk as soon as he had the volcano under control.

After quickly finishing her meal, she dressed and headed out. Her living quarters were much different from what she had first been offered here in Yamamachi. The Governor's manor had been destroyed by the volcano and the White Lotus had set up a base of operation in what remained of the outer courtyard. People had been living wherever they could; anything with a roof was had been used. The people of Yamamachi had been kind enough to let Aang and Katara stay in one of the few remaining standing buildings. The small merchant's home had some fire damage but had otherwise gotten out unscathed by the whole incident. Aang had been deeply touched by the peoples' hospitality and had at first tried to refuse such a luxury. In the end he had compromised by making sure the rest of the rooms had been lent to the most destitute. Prideful and stubborn the Colonists might have been, but they also extremely generous and appreciative. The lengths they went to take care of each other were extraordinary. That fact alone had been proven time and again over the past week.

The boardwalks had been one of the first things repaired. Without them travelling through town would involve traversing through stinking bogs of infectious, still water and sharp, jutting volcanic rock. Yamamachi had proper raised, stone roads now, formed by Earthbenders out of the volcanic debris, and their neat lines jarred shockingly with the town's carnage. A lot had been done to fix the town in the week since but there still so much left to do. Some things were just irreparable, like many of the homes. But whole sections of the town had been wiped out completely, taken by the lava flow or sunk under the lake.

The lake.

By far that was Yamamachi's greatest change. Sourced from Mount Kawayama's underground river, Yamamachi now sat beside an enormous lake. It spanned beyond the Mountain's breadth and reached all the way to Phutak. Considering that the Mountain's underpass had been destroyed that was just as well. Contact with the sister colony was frequent and the relief efforts were a joint task between both towns. In fact, passage between Yamamachi and Phutak was getting so common now Katara had heard rumours of perhaps building a bridge to join the two towns.

"Master Katara!"

Katara turned and spotted one of the White Lotus approach her, Master Lomakk, and groaned inwardly. He was the company leader of the White Lotus and over the week had done wonders in organising the relief work. He was also stuffy and a diehard traditionalist. He did not like calling Katara 'master', that was for sure. But he was a Waterbender and her inferior in terms of status. Tradition, the very thing he stuck by, practically required he call her such. Katara hoped his inward turmoil gave him indigestion.

"Master Lomakk." Katara inclined her head politely.

"Apologies for stopping you, Katara," Lomakk said, immediately dropping Katara's prefix. "I know you're going to meet the Fire Lord."

"Not a problem, Lomakk," Katara replied. "What's up?"

There was a faint grimace to his face when Katara addressed him without the honorific. She smiled sweetly at him as he answered her. "I wonder if you could tell me where the Avatar is. I need him to overlook some reports."

Katara almost glared at him. It wasn't 'have you seen the Avatar?' but 'do you know where he is?'. Lomakk knew all about her and Aang's living arrangement and did not approve. The fact of the matter was, though, that Katara and Aang had done nothing except sleep under that roof; Aang was hardly in the mood for any of the kinds of things Lomakk was thinking of. But facts didn't matter to this man when simple assumptions would do.

"No, Lomakk, I haven't seen him today," Katara replied tersely. "But if the reports you want overlooked have anything to do with administration, then good luck getting Aang to sit down for it. He's not been well enough for that sort of thing lately."

"Well or not, Katara, it's part of his duty," Lomakk replied. "There's more to saving a disaster-affected town than 'stop the volcano'."

The man had a point there. Katara sighed. "You're right, Lomakk. Here, hand me the reports. I'll make sure he sees them by the end of the day."

"Thank you, Katara." After he handed them over, though, Lomakk did not leave.

"Something else, Lomakk?"

"It's Sutari," he said. He watched as Katara's face fell flat. "I know that you're not trained as a healer, Katara, but she could really use some help. The sick keep coming to her door and she doesn't have the resources to see them all. If you could stop by and lend her a hand…"

_And sit comfortably in my proper role as a female waterbender?_ Katara abandoned that line of thinking almost immediately. Lomakk was being polite as he ever had been with her, as if knowing the subject would send prickles down her back. And besides, Sutari did need the hand.

"I'll try and help her out this afternoon, Lomakk," she replied finally. "Will that do?"

He nodded. "Yes, I'll tell her myself. Thank you, Katara."

"You're welcome, Lomakk," she replied and watched him walk away. She didn't know how much help she could be for Sutari, though. Saving Aang all those years ago had been pretty much a fluke. And when Khan had carried Sho to them, closer to dead than not, it hadn't really been her that had saved him, it was-

"You shouldn't think so badly of him."

Katara turned and smiled. "And why's that, Oji? The world's moving on and it's time Lomakk caught up with it."

Oji smiled easily, a smile reminiscent of his sister's. "We're old folk, Katara. Change is hard for us and Lomakk is hardly the worst of our generation. Matter of fact, I think he's doing quite well handling you."

"Oh?"

"Yes," Oji grinned. "A whole week spent with a modern-thinking, female Watertribe warrior and he hasn't had an apoplexy once."

Katara laughed. "I guess that's true. Have to give the man some credit there."

The horn from the town border sounded an arrival.

"Oh dear, that's our cue, Katara," Oji said. "Better not be late for a Fire Lord, eh?"

Katara sniffed. "_We've _been waiting for _him_ a week now. He can stand to wait a few minutes more."

Oji quirked a brow as they began to walk to the border. "You _are_ in a testy mood today, aren't you?"

Katara sighed, her good humour draining away. "It's Aang."

"Ah."

They walked in silence for a moment, weaving their way through both the crowds and the as yet uncleared rubble.

"You know, I think he just needs some time, Katara," Oji said finally. "He's been through an ordeal and you don't get over those quickly."

"I know," Katara replied, frustration edging her tone. "I just wish I could do something for him."

Oji placed a friendly hand on her shoulder. "Be there; that's all he needs. You can't fix his problems at the moment. That's something he's gotta do himself. But if you let him know that you're there for him, well, that can't go wrong."

Katara nodded appreciatively. "And you, Oji? How are you coping?"

Oji became quieter. "Oh. You know. I'm an old man. I don't have much time left to deal with _my_ problems. Better if I try to move on best as I can."

"You know," Katara replied, putting a gentle hand on his shoulder. "I'm here for you too."

His eyes moistened and threatened to overflow as he gripped her hand in friendship. "You're a good girl. I bet Oba would have liked you."

"Katara!"

They both turned and spotted Zuko. The Fire Lord was outfitted in travelling attire and, as this was strictly a diplomatic trip, was without his usual Dao blades. He had a squad of Imperial Guards with him as well as a couple of aides. Zuko never travelled light since his coronation. Katara smiled and ran up to greet him.

"Good to see you, Zuko," she said. "Safe trip?"

Zuko nodded. "Pretty dull."

He looked about him, noting the destruction of the town. "You guys looked like you had an interesting time, though."

"'Interesting' is not the word I'd use," Katara replied drily. "This is Oji of the White Lotus."

Oji bowed to Zuko. "A pleasure to meet you, Fire Lord. Your uncle speaks highly of you."

Zuko smiled faintly. "I haven't seen Uncle in some time. I doubt he has anything good to say about me at the moment."

"Grand Master Iroh knows you're a busy young man," Oji said, his eyes twinkling knowingly. "But a busy young man should know his priorities too."

This time Zuko flushed with embarrassment. "Of course."

"Well, shall we get going, Zuko?" Katara asked. "Aang's likely waiting."

Zuko gave her a thankful look for changing the subject. "Where is Aang, anyway? I thought he would be here to meet me."

"I'm _hoping_ he's at the Outer Courtyard," Katara said in exasperation. "Honestly, forget having a bison whistle, sometimes I feel like I need an Avatar one."

Oji laughed raucously. "Oh dear, Katara. You're hardly the first woman to say that about a man."

"I know Mai would like one for me," Zuko grumbled.

Oji laughed again and Katara didn't hide her amusement. "Come along, Zuko. I know that Aang's letter only said to arrive quickly, so I'm about to fill you in on everything that's happened. Try to keep hold of your good humour. You're going to need it."

* * *

Lieutenant Sho stared at the gift on his cot. His army uniform was clean, repaired, pressed and folded. Sitting beside it was his chest piece, the dents hammered out, the scratches buffed, the straps replaced and the whole thing polished. He fingered the neat stitches in the clothes and wondered at the time and effort put into fixing the whole uniform. He looked up at Sai Lin, saw the uncertainty on her face.

"Well?" she asked nervously.

He looked back down again, unable to take his eyes away from it for very long. "This is the best present anyone has ever given me."

Sai Lin clicked her tongue. "Only you would say that about getting some clothes back."

Sho glanced up and smiled. The look in her eye said she was pleased, despite her off-handedness. He pulled Sai Lin into a hug. "Thank you."

Sai Lin was a little stiff for a moment before she tentatively hugged him back. Her touch was light, mindful of the wound dressings under his loose robe. His arms, one splinted and the other bandaged, held her awkwardly.

"It was just a bit of washing and needlework," she mumbled into his shoulder. "That's all."

"Of course," Sho replied.

She pulled away from him and gave him a stern look. "Try not to get it ruined again."

He gave her a mock salute. "Yes, sir."

Sho had only come out of unconsciousness three days ago. On opening his eyes she had been the first person he'd seen. Since then Sai Lin hardly had seemed to leave his side. He didn't mind, really. Actually, he rather liked having her around. She seemed different somehow, like a great weight had been lifted from her.

Which was more than could be said for him. Sho was still weak as a newborn koalamb and he had to rely on others to help him get in and out of bed. He spent his days in a wheeled chair, wearing the ground out of the few paved paths surrounding the medic tents. There was no shortage of visitors or people to talk to; the Colonists seemed to have gained a strange respect for him since he'd faced their army down in the gully. But that didn't make up for the freedom – or the energy, for that matter – to go where he liked. And as for the admiration of his colleagues and the Colonists… well, Sho would rather they said nothing at all to him about the matter. He didn't feel like any kind of hero or a warrior, like he always hoped he'd become. The memory of giving up, of slumping down and accepting death stung him badly. The fact that nobody mentioned it only made it stand out even more. Maybe they were so embarrassed by his actions that they were trying to make him feel better by not bringing it up. Maybe they couldn't even _bring_ themselves to mention it, such was their shame. He covered a sigh as Sai Lin got his attention again.

"I also found this in your uniform," she said.

Sho frowned as she held out something to him. It was, of all things, a Watertribe betrothal necklace.

"Something you want to tell me, Lieutenant?" Sai Lin asked, her voice sweetly innocent.

"This isn't mine," Sho replied, confused.

"No," she said and rolled her eyes with amusement. "It's Aang's. Why do you have it?"

"The Avatar's?" Sho shifted uncomfortably on his chair. "I don't know why I would have it. I can't remember…"

"Well, you should at least give it back to him," Sai Lin told him, shrugging off the matter. She took his hand and dropped the necklace into it. "He probably needs it for…later."

Sho fingered it awkwardly in his hand. "Yeah. Later."

A horn blow sounded through the window. Sai Lin stood up and brushed her hands down her dress. "That'll be the Fire Lord, I suspect."

"I'll need to change into my uniform," Sho mused, "now that I have one again."

He noticed the smile Sai Lin tried to hide but when she spoke she was all concern. ""I thought you would be more excited to see the Fire Lord."

"Yeah."

She stared at him.

Sho blinked and then stuttered enthusiastically. "Yes. Yes! Yes, I'm excited!"

Sai Lin quirked an eyebrow. She came over to him again and knelt beside him. "Sho?"

He tried for a smile but the look in her eye cut through the fakery. "It's nothing."

She frowned, her mouth forming a thin line. "You know," she began slowly, "what you did in the gully? That was the bravest thing I've ever known."

He jerked a bitter smile and pulled his eyes away from her. "Braver than you alone under the Mountain?"

"Braver. And you're changing the subject."

"Am I?"

"Yes. Sho?"

He continued to avoid looking at her and she growled in frustration. Sai Lin took his head in her hands and turned him toward her.

"Sho!"

"Yes?" His voice was tight with anger. Not at her but he couldn't keep the aggression from his tone.

Her frown met his, glaring eyes fighting each other. Then, suddenly, she smiled.

"You're going to be fine."

Sho looked at her and wanted to hold on to his anger, wanted to smile back. He wanted to… "Do I have hay in my hair again?"

Sai Lin blinked and then _blushed_ profusely. She snatched her hands away and stood quickly. Sho hid a smile, unsure why he was so pleased to make her blush. Sai Lin grumbled under her breath. "I'll bring someone in to help you change."

He noticed a tremble in her hands. Her voice quivered a little. There were reasons, he realised, for her to dread this visit too. He grabbed her hand just as she turned to leave.

"Sai Lin?" You'll be alright too."

She gave him a half smile, squeezed his hand and left.

* * *

Sai Lin didn't believe Sho's last words to her but she tried to take heart in them. during the week since the volcano (so much was wrapped up with that day but calling it 'the day of the volcano' was easier) Sai Lin had come to accept her guilt in Governor Faizin's murder, in the kidnapping of Aang and in almost starting another war. She'd even come to accept she was even indirectly responsible for other things: Sho and Khan's torture and Sho's subsequent irreversible change, Katara's heartache, Oba's death and, most painful of them all, hurting the Avatar in every way possible. And there had been some peace in accepting those things. But…

She had avoided seeing Aang since that day. Now she would have to face not only him but the Fire Lord also. Accepting guilt was one thing, knowing that an axe was about to come down on her head was something else.

The path to the Courtyard was a short, direct paved route. It hand been one of the first pathways repaired, keeping the way to the healers' tents clear and within easy access to the Courtyard, the centre of the relief work. There were many others traversing the tracks but Sai Lin mostly kept to herself nowadays. There hand been awkward moments early on when Sai Lin realised she no longer knew what to say to her old friends and they to her. It was easier if she said nothing; try to keep Yamamachi and all that was in it at a distance. That way when her punishment came – whatever that punishment might be – it wouldn't be so painful to leave her home behind. And she would leave it, that she knew. Jail, banishment, death; her future had narrowed to three possibilities and none of them involved staying in Yamamachi.

"Eager to meet your end, are you?"

Sai Lin turned with a start. General Khan nodded politely and gave a smile that only enhanced the predatory look that naturally held his eyes. He joined her on the path.

"How do you mean?" she asked him.

"The Fire Lord's arrival is only minutes old and you're already off to see him?" The General smirked. "I've never known a more punctual prisoner than you."

"I'm not eager," Sai Lin muttered. "I simply have nothing better to do."

Khan laughed at that. "You know, if I had less good judgement and more time I might have liked you."

"Thank you for the compliment, General," Sai Lin tersely replied. "I can't say the sentiment is mutual."

Khan chuckled again before continuing. "And what of our spritely, dual-bending Lieutenant? How is he today?"

She stopped and rounded on him. "If you bothered to visit him you would know!"

"Sho doesn't want to see an old man," Khan smiled, "when he can spend time with a pretty girl like you."

Sai Lin felt her cheeks grow hot. Spirits, would the embarrassment never end today? "Sho likes you. More than that he _admires_ you! Ever since his fight at the gully he's felt nothing but shame at his giving up. You can talk some sense into him. You can make him see some reason because I can't anymore! I don't have…"

Spirits, tears now? She couldn't afford to cry, not yet. She had to be brave at the end. She had to be strong or she wouldn't make it through. Sai Lin wiped her eyes and glared at the General. "Promise me you'll visit him."

Khan regarded her, his heavy brow shadowing his eyes. "I promise."

She nodded and set off once more. Khan joined her after a moment. They didn't talk again until they reached the Courtyard. It was packed with activity, people moving to and fro from the large assembly of tents. Sai Lin spotted the Fire Lord's complement of soldiers. They stood guard in front of the Courtyard's largest tent, an ungainly mottled green thing, patched and repaired countless times. Sai Lin and Khan stopped before it, the General instructing one of the soldiers to announce his arrival.

Sai Lin felt a panic rise in her stomach. It inched its way upward and crept to her chest. She took a shaky breath. "I'll wait here, then."

Khan nodded and turned to enter. He stopped then suddenly and turned back. "Before I lose the chance I want to say…thankyou for saving my life back then. For pulling us into your cart."

Sai Lin blinked in surprise. She stammered to find a reply.

"Of course, I wouldn't have had to be saved if you hadn't betrayed us in the beginning," Khan finished casually.

"Of course," Sai Lin fumed at him.

He smiled at her then and bowed formally. "Good luck, Sai Lin."

He parted ways with her and entered the tent. Sai Lin caught a glimpse inside as the tent flaps opened. There were people talking. She saw a man she recognised only from his portraits – Fire Lord Zuko. But the other man, younger and yet so much older, held her attention. Aang turned his eyes to Khan's entrance, greeted him then looked beyond. To Sai Lin.

Their eyes met and Sai Lin's breath caught. And then the tent flaps closed and he was gone.

* * *

Introductions were brief and it wasn't long before General Khan dropped his bombshell. "I here now speak by the authority of Earth King Kuei; the Earth Kingdom withdraws its claim of ownership of the Fire Nation Colonies."

Zuko choked on his tea, coughing and spluttering. "_What?_"

General Khan's face was blank. "The Earth Kingdom rescinds."

Zuko stared at him, trying to find the trick in his words. When there was nothing to be found he examined the others in the tent in turn: Oji, Katara and finally Aang.

"Is this you?" he asked him.

Aang raised an eyebrow but Khan's laughter pulled Zuko's head back to him.

"Boy," Khan's grin was not of mirth, "if you are asking that of him then you do not know him very well. And if you are suggesting that I have been pressured in any way…" that grin widened.

Zuko was not cowled. "Alright, then _why_? The Earth Kingdom has been digging its heels with this for years and now all of a sudden it's letting go?"

"There is nothing sudden about this decision, Fire Lord," Khan replied. "The Earth Kingdom has come to understand and accept that the Colonies do not belong to us."

"So you admit they are Fire Nation property?"

"No," General Khan straightened and folded his arms across his chest. "They do not belong to us _or_ to you. They belong to themselves."

Zuko's face pinched in disbelief. "Excuse me?"

"Along with withdrawing its claim of ownership, the Earth Kingdom also acknowledges the Colonists claim of independence as legitimate," Khan stated. "And we are willing to support their claim by whatever means are necessary."

The room dropped into frigid silence. Zuko searched the General's face, matching glare for glare. After all these years the Earth Kingdom drops their claim on the Colonies? Zuko didn't believe it. And now the ulterior motive came out; independence for the Colonies. But what benefit was there in that for them?

Aang. He looked over at his friend and frowned. He still couldn't see the pros of this for the Earth Kingdom but whatever it was there was no doubt in his mind that Aang had something to do with it.

"A word with you," he told him. "Alone."

The General huffed. "Fire Lord-"

Zuko cut him off with a raised hand. He never took his eyes off Aang. "Alone."

Aang met his look blankly and then nodded. The others began to leave grudgingly. Katara put a hand on Aang's shoulder, which touch he reciprocated by placing a hand on hers.

Zuko said nothing and the others left quietly. He watched Aang across the tent, studying his friend's face. His scalp was shaved clean but the beard was new, as was the dark look to his eyes; like he had seen too much and then some. Zuko wondered at that; Katara had told him a lot, most of it extraordinary (dualbenders, for Agni's sake!). But he was sure she'd held back some, the worst of it probably. Zuko's scrutiny softened; what had they done to him?

Aang's blank stare suddenly broke. His face split into a grin and then finally burst with laughter. "Hogmonkeys, Zuko. Your face never changes, you know? Happy, sad, it's always the same." He pulled a face that was rather unflattering.

"Is that supposed to be me?" Zuko sighed; it seemed some things about Aang would never change. "I thought your time spent in this place might have made you grow up a little but it seems I was wrong."

"I have grown up," Aang commented. "Got a beard now, see?"

Zuko pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. "Aang, please, the Earth Kingdom just sucker punched me in the gut and you're making jokes? What did you do to change their mind about the Colonies?"

"Nothing."

"I don't believe you," Zuko said. "You have a talent for making people do the unexpected and this has you written all over it."

"Well, check again," Aang countered. "General Khan has a flair for dramatic statements. He thinks telling the truth is more shocking than telling a lie. It really was the entire Colonies' influence and not mine."

"But I don't get it," Zuko replied. "Why would the Earth Kingdom do this? Why accept the Colonies' claims for independence? What benefit is it to them?"

"Maybe that's exactly what their claims are, Zuko," Aang said. "Legitimate. Maybe that's why the Earth Kingdom is backing them in this."

"What? Aang they turned on you and attacked two official representatives. They almost started another war." Zuko shook his head. "They're guerrillas, Aang, rebels, and you don't accept the demands of people like that."

"They certainly went about getting our attention the wrong way," Aang said, "I'm not denying that. But that doesn't make their concerns any less legitimate. Zuko, they are a new thing in this world and we don't have any right to push it away."

"Aang, they _tortured_ you!" Zuko returned vehemently. "They abused you and almost destroyed the balance that we fought so hard to restore. How can you let something like that pass?"

Aang's eyes were grave. "I thought you of all people would understand that."

Zuko's mouth clicked shut. Aang measured him with a look, knowing he had hit a mark. Zuko levelled a look back at him; any humour Aang had before had vanished. It was fast enough to give the Fire Lord whiplash. Just what was going in his friend's head?

"You're different," Zuko found himself saying. It filled the silence between them like an accusation.

Aang huffed a little. "As you've so aptly pointed out a few bad things have happened to me lately."

"This is worse," Zuko said.

"_Worse?_" Aang straightened his back, his eyes hardening. "Wanting the best for the Colonies is _worse_?"

"I'm not talking about the Colonies, Aang," Zuko replied. "Katara tells me you've not been yourself. I figured it was your treatment here. But you're defending these people, Aang, like you owe it to them. What happened?"

Aang turned his head away. "It doesn't matter."

"Yes, it does," Zuko said. "You're avoiding the subject like you always do when something's too hard to deal with. If humour doesn't work then you run away."

"I am _not running away!_"

Zuko stiffened. Aang's face was flushed with anger, his grey eyes dangerous. The anger slid out of him slowly, visibly.

"I'm not running away," Aang said quietly this time. "I'm not avoiding the issue; I'm not still stuck with my head in an iceberg."

"Aang?"_ Iceberg? _Where the heck had that come from? "I didn't-"

"I'm going to help these people, Zuko," Aang interrupted. "Because things are moving in this world faster than you and I can hold it back. And if we can't stop them, at least we can guide them along the way."

Zuko studied the desperate look in his friend's eyes; the earnestness of his posture.

"I'm willing to listen to your arguments, Aang," he told him finally. "And the plans you no doubt have in mind."

Aang stared at him, smiled a little. "Just like that?"

Zuko shrugged. "I'm not promising anything, am I? I still think you and the Earth Kingdom are nuts to back the Colonies independence claims."

"But I can convince you?"

"You can _try_ to convince me, Aang."

His smile widened. "It's as good a start as any."

* * *

Sho checked himself in the tall, chipped stand mirror. He had shaved and dressed as best he could. His broken leg, bandaged and/or cast arms and thoroughly wrapped torso meant that putting on his uniform should have been a two-man job. _Should _have been but Sho had some pride left; he had done it himself.

It had taken more effort than he had expected. By the time he tied the last sash he was drenched in sweat and sore all over. The breast plate was impossible to put on, not that he hadn't tried, and reluctantly he had left it on his bed.

He eyed himself critically. His appearance was poor, hardly the look befitting a soldier of the Imperial Fire Nation Army. He felt shabby, unclean, rumpled. He tried straightening his shirt but only made it look worse. What he really needed to do was stand up.

He placed his unbroken arm on its rest and his good foot on the floor (not booted; another impossibility). It briefly occurred to him that maybe this wasn't such a good idea, he had so far _always_ needed another person to help him stand. But again, pride shoved his doubts away. He would not act useless, he would not give up.

With an effort sustained by anger, sho pushed himself upright and stood.

For about three seconds.

First his leg gave way beneath him, followed promptly by smacking his 'good' arm down on the chair rest and then finally cracking his head on the wheel rim before collapsing in a heap on the ground.

"Oww…"

The pain shot through immediately, no dramatic pause, no slow build; it was just _there_.

"Owwwaa_aaaarh!_"

Pathetic. Stupid and pathetic, that's what he was. Unable even to stand up on his own. He didn't deserve to wear his uniform. He grabbed the front of his shirt, yanked it away from his neck. It tore and revealed his bloody bandages beneath, his wounds broken open from the fall.

"Oh, great!" he yelled and stared at his ruined shirt. "_Great!_"

He had made a promise to Sai Lin to keep his uniform clean and he couldn't even keep it in one piece for a day. _I'm pathetic_, he thought as he scrubbed tears from his face. _Absolutely pathetic_.

"Need a hand?"

Sho looked up. "General?"

Khan smiled and put his arms under Sho's. "Hold still."

The General hoisted him easily off the floor and back into his chair.

"There." Khan patted the chair's wheel admiringly. "Nice contraption. Never had these in my day. It was all bed rest and boredom."

Sho said nothing and scrubbed his face again, trying to hide evidence of his shame.

"So I see you've broken Sai Lin's gift," Khan said. "Good for you."

"It was an accident!" Sho yelled.

Khan shrugged and said nothing more on it.

"Why are you here, General?" Sho snapped.

The General smiled. "I'm here to cheer you up. How are you, Lieutenant?"

Sho gave a bitter laugh. "How do I look?"

"Pathetic, honestly," Khan replied.

Sho jerked as Khan's words stung him. "What?"

"You're a mess, Lieutenant," Khan continued. "A pathetic mess."

"And how is this cheering me up?" Sho grated.

"Oh, it's not," Khan smiled kindly. "Just an observation."

"Wonderful. Thank you so much for pointing that out to me, General," Sho spat. "I really couldn't say how I was until just then. You're a treasure."

Khan laughed. "Sarcasm is the lowest form of humour but I'm glad to see you've at least found some, Lieutenant. It really is the best thing in situations like this. It's what kept me sane whilst in prison."

Sho gave him a look that spoke volumes. Khan returned it with a knowing smile. They stared at each other like that for a minute, two, unblinking. Then Sho burst into laughter. Even that sounded weak to his ears; hollow and fake. He looked at his torn uniform, watched his bandages spot with blood.

"I _am_ pathetic, General," he said, quietly.

Khan squatted beside him and patted his shoulder. "You are, indeed. But not for the reasons you think."

Sho looked up at him. "I failed. I gave up."

"And I let an old woman die," Khan replied. "What's worse?"

Sho shook his head. "You can't compare the two. Oba's death wasn't your fault."

"Yes it is," Khan said, "because I say it is. No matter how illogical and irrational it may seem to others, I blame Oba's death on myself."

"That's stupid."

Khan smiled. "It is, isn't it? Pathetic."

Sho stared at him, refusing to acknowledge his point.

"Lieutenant," Khan continued, "we all do things we are not proud of. Me, the Fire Lord, even the Avatar. And you keep those moments in your head forever."

"You're still not cheering me up," Sho muttered.

"That's because I haven't told you the trick to beating those moments."

"What trick?" Sho asked.

"You take them…" and then Khan grinned savagely, "then you throw them away, cursing them forever with every blighted word you can think of. And then, Lieutenant…"

He stood up then and held out his hand. "Then you try again."

* * *

Aang sat alone in the Command tent and listened to the voice of Bokku. It wasn't so much a voice, actually, rather than a presence. The Avatar Spirit had been returned to him more than whole. Fragments of a stranger's life sat buried in his head, foreign bodies in an otherwise smooth consciousness. It gave him the strangest sensations; out-of-body experiences and a sense of recalling events that had happened to someone else. It had caused other things, too. Sho's life hadn't been saved by Katara alone. Aang had helped. Somehow he had known a little healing, a sudden development in his bending. Even after death, Bokku manipulated and contorted, forcing growth. But without him, Aang reminded himself, Sho would have died.

Aang had forgiven Bokku. But now, it seemed he would never be allowed to forget him.

He suspected Katara knew. She had been uptight around him lately, hovering protectively nearby. She always knew his moods better than he did. Katara could read him like a book. He smiled fondly at that. He had been worrying her and he hated the feeling. He promised himself that today he would set things right with her.

Zuko had left a while ago. The two had spoken for a long time about many different things. Sometimes their talking would get heated but, in the end, they called it a day. By the time Zuko had pulled the tent flaps open to leave it was already late afternoon. Aang wondered where Katara was. He wanted nothing more than her company then.

He stood and stretched, letting his mind come into focus again. The sound of Bokku became a faint murmur, a crackling in the harmony of the Avatar Spirit. The effort to focus his thoughts was becoming easier, like the slow fade ringing after a loud noise. Eventually he hoped it would disappear altogether. But for now he would put up with it.

Aang stepped out of the tent and into the sunshine. There were no more Imperial Guards at the tent, no servants or workers scurrying by. The Courtyard was strangely empty. Aang scratched his beard. "Where is everyone?"

"The Fire Lord's inspecting the town."

Aang turned his head and found Sai Lin. She was sitting on the ground beside the tent.

"I imagine everyone's gone to watch him parade around," she finished.

"And you didn't join them?" Aang asked.

"I was waiting for you," she answered.

Aang thought for a moment, then: "Ah."

"Should we go inside?" Sai Lin asked. Aang heard the trepidation in her voice.

"I've had enough of inside there," he told her cheerfully. "I feel like some fresh air."

"Oh," Sai Lin said. "I'll wait for you, then."

"And miss out on your company?" Aang smiled. "Come on."

He held out his hand and, after some hesitation, she took it and stood.

"Where are we going, Avatar?" she asked him.

He shrugged. "Why don't you show me around?"

They wandered for a time, speaking only occasionally. They looked at buildings, broken and new. They walked through submerged paths, Aang clearing a way for them both. They spotted Zuko and his entourage, what looked like the whole town out to view him. They found a glade among the trees, beautiful and cool in the sweltering heat.

They reached a dilapidated, old building on their way back to the Courtyard.

"This was my home," Sai Lin said.

By then it was early evening and the sky was purpling. The sun cast strange, melancholy shadows across the walls of the house. Aang reached a hand out, felt the stone wall fragment under his fingers.

"I guess it doesn't matter anymore," she finished.

Aang took his hand away and brushed his fingertips. He turned to her. Her face was unreadable as she stared at her old home.

"Tell me why you did it, Sai Lin," Aang said. "Why did you kill Faizin?"

Sai Lin said nothing for a moment. Then she took a deep breath. "Faizin was a good man."

"I know," Aang said.

Sai Lin shook her head, her eyes lost in the past. "I didn't. Not until after he was gone."

She sat down on an upheaved stone; part of her old home. "He found out about our smuggling weapons. Tonshi was syphoning funds from the taxes to pay for them. Faizin was furious. I had never seen him so angry."

Aang came and sat down beside her.

"We were afraid," Sai Lin continued. "We didn't know what Faizin would do. Tonshi got so scared that Faizin would find out about our dualbenders, too. Everything was happening at once. And then Bokku came up with his idea."

She turned to Aang. "To bring you here."

She turned away again, paused to recollect. "Tonshi didn't hesitate to agree but I wasn't so sure.

"But then, I met with Faizin. He said he was going to the Fire Nation the next day. That it was time to change things in Yamamachi. I thought he meant turning us in. I hated him for it; that he couldn't understand what we were fighting for.

"I agreed to Bokku's plan."

Neither of them said anything for a while, both absorbing that final statement.

"Faizin wasn't turning you in," Aang said, finally.

"No," Sai Lin responded. "He wasn't."

"He was proposing an annex of the Colonies, that they become independent. I found the draft proposal in his study when I was investigating."

"I found it too. But by then it was too late. I had to push forward no matter what. I had to save my people." Sai Lin's face was full of bitter regret. "And then I turned out like your friend, Aang, just as you said I would. I destroyed my home."

"Jet saved my life, too," Aang commented. He shifted on the stone, uncomfortable with what was to come. "I made mistakes, too, Sai Lin. I dismissed the Colonies. I didn't like it here; I thought everything about it was wrong. And I let that thinking cloud my judgement. If I only paid more attention, if I wasn't so afraid of change, then maybe none of this would have happened."

He took a deep breath and faced her. "I'm sorry. As the Avatar I have failed the Colonies. I wanted a balance that didn't fit the world anymore and the Colonies bore the brunt of that failure. Forgive me."

Sai Lin stared at him. Her mouth opened and closed but no words came out. Aang waited patiently. And then, finally, she answered him.

"I can't."

Aang blinked. "Wow. Gotta admit that wasn't the answer I was expecting."

"I don't mean it like that," Sai Lin corrected hurriedly. "I can't forgive you because I don't have the right to. We've both done things we'd rather forget, me especially. I don't deserve to forgive you."

Aang gave a small smile. "Then how about we start over, then? Do things right this time."

"Just like that?" Sai Lin asked incredulously.

Aang's smile widened. "Just like that."

"But what about the dualbenders?" Sai Lin protested. "Or the army? Our bid for independence?"

"The dualbenders stay," Aang said. His brow creased thoughtfully. "I won't remove the bending of that many people. Nature and time can remove them on their own. But if they're meant for our time? Well, we'll just have to wait and see."

Was that Bokku's reasoning in his mind? Bloodlines and family branches, ladders and boxes, whirled in Aang's head. He pushed them all aside.

"As for the army," Aang continued. "Well, I have plans for them."

Huge plans. He had not brought it up with Zuko yet; that was an argument for another day.

"And the Colonies?" Sai Lin asked again.

Aang gave a small smile. "I promised I would help, didn't I? That I wouldn't leave until I had done everything I could to help your people."

Sai Lin stared at him. "'Avatar's Oath'."

Aang nodded. He buzzed with excitement for the future. Suddenly, it didn't seem so terrifying anymore. _Katara,_ he thought. It all seemed so easy now.

"And me?" Sai Lin asked hesitantly. "I'm still waiting to hear my sentence."

His excitement faded a little and he was slow to answer. "If it was up to me," he said, "I wouldn't punish you at all."

He watched her heart sink. "But?"

"It's not just you and me," he finished.

"The Fire Lord," Sai Lin said bleakly.

Aang nodded. "Zuko and I talked about it and we've come to a compromise."

Compromise was the best word for it. It would have been exile for Sai Lin, even with her reforming actions. Zuko said that they couldn't have a ring leader of the rebel cause remain in the Colonies. It could incite another uprising, whether Sai Lin wanted it or not. But Aang refused to have her branded as a criminal. And so they went for the next best option.

Aang told Sai Lin her fate. He watched the knowledge sink in her, the light of recognition flick on in her eyes. She realised she had just been thrown a lifeline.

"I won't be able to stay," she said.

"No," Aang replied. "But that doesn't mean you won't visit here every now and then. You could even visit me, if you like."

Sai Lin's eyes brimmed with tears and she suddenly flung her arms around him.

"Thank you," she cried. "Thank you, thank you."

After a moment Aang put his arms around her and hugged her back.

"It'll be alright, Sai Lin," he told her. "You're going to be fine."

And so, Aang thought, was he.

* * *

Katara stretched and knuckled the small of her back. Her hands were spongy and wrinkled from being wrapped in water for so long and her eyes drooped with weariness. There was a mess of blood and dirt on her apron and her hair broke away from its braid. Still, it had been a surprisingly satisfying evening. She hadn't expected to enjoy the healing work so much.

"Thank you for your help, Katara," Sutari said. "You can go now, I'll finish up here."

When Sutari suggested something it was as good as an order. She brooked no nonsense in her surgery and expected none from others. Katara learned quickly to jump to it when Sutari asked something of her.

"Will I see you tomorrow?" Sutari asked.

Katara continued to untie her apron, stalling for an answer. "If my other duties don't interfere," was what she finally settled on.

The older woman's eyes narrowed. She was yet another one which did not approve of Katara's 'other duties'. Still, she was good enough to keep her opinion to herself.

"Try to make the time, Katara," she told her. "Your healing technique is sorely lacking and to be a true master you must perfect _every_ facet of your bending."

"Of course, Sutari," Katara replied politely. "Maybe then I can teach you some combat techniques? Maybe a little water whip?"

Sutari eyed her. "Maybe," she said flatly. "Off with you now."

Katara left the hut with a smile.

"Those _Southern _girls,' she heard on her way out.

Her smile broke into a proud grin.

She walked up the road, the way lit by torch light. The infirmary area was huge, with more people coming every day. Not that there were so many injuries from the volcano or the subsequent construction work, but that word got out healers were available in Yamamachi. Apparently not every colony had a physician. The idea of that burned in Katara. There were so many people to help but so few healers. Yes, she would come back tomorrow, but not because Lomakk or Sutari expected it of her, but because she wanted to.

She stopped as she heard the murmur of voices up ahead. Two men stood outside the torchlight. One she recognised immediately as Aang. But who was that other one?

"Aang?" she called.

Aang turned to her and quickly said something to the other man. The man bowed awkwardly and hobbled away on a crutch. Aang ran down to her.

"Well, hello handsome," she smiled.

He kissed her. "Hello, beautiful."

Katara laughed. "I don't feel beautiful at the moment but that very nice of you to say." She pointed in the direction of the other man, now gone from sight. "Who was that?"

"Sho," Aang answered.

Katara's eyes widened. "_Sho?_ But…but he was walking!"

"Yep," Aang grinned. "He wanted to give something back to me but I said I didn't need it anymore."

"What was it?" Katara asked.

"Doubt." Then Aang took both her hands in his. "Katara…"

Katara saw the look in his eye, felt the quivering of his hands, watched the tremulous smile creep on his face. She knew what was happening, what was about to happen. Secretly, she had daydreamt of this moment. She had planned a future, even now when she was so frightened that he was changing, drifting away from her.

"Things have changed," he said. "A lot of things. But not everything."

Give him time, they kept telling her. Just give him some time.

Right then, as he stumbled through his words and fumbled with his question, as he stammered and stuttered, Katara was ready to give him all the time in the world.


	20. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

Sho stood on the newly completed Ping An Bridge. It had been completed today, a year since the volcano had rocked the land. It was a beautiful structure, soaring, delicate and unlike any architecture Sho had seen before. He had watched it go up day by day always amazed at the speed it was built. Of course, it helped to have dualbenders on the construction team.

He stared out at the view and felt his awe rise. The Independent Colonies were growing more rapidly than anyone imagined. People of all nations were flocking to its open arms. The Colonists' own style was changing under this new influence and it really was a beautiful thing. Sho had never felt homesick with his assignment. The Independent Colonies had a little bit of everything; Fire Nation, Earth Kingdom, Water Tribe and even Air Nomad. There was the Avatar's home sitting on a small island on the lake. They were actually thinking of expanding the lake and restructuring the land to create a bay. Sho shook his head; the progress would not stop.

He felt his heart flutter. Would she come? They saw each other so little these days, her work taking her all over the world while his assignment kept him in the Independent Colonies. Liason Officer for the United Independent Colonies meant he was kept almost ludicrously busy. He dealt with officials from all the nations and he did his best to make their needs fit in line with that of the Colonies. Sometimes he felt like a circus act; the end of that last meeting with the Northern Water Tribe certainly demanded applause.

"Captain Qin?"

Sho turned. His heart stopped. His stomach dropped. His mouth went dry.

Sai Lin gave a radiant smile. "Waiting for someone?"

Sho grinned. She looked beautiful. She held her White Lotus helmet under one arm and her dark hair wisped in the wind. He dispensed with his usual formal bow and gathered her in a hug.

"I missed you," he said when he finally let her go.

"I'm sorry, I don't have long," she replied. "Your message said it was urgent, so I came, but Oji only gave me till the quarter hour."

"No rest for the wicked," Sho smiled.

"Ha. Funny." She hit his shoulder affectionately. "Now, what's so important that you had to drag me away from my punishing duties?"

This was it, Sho thought. This was the moment. But now that it had come he suddenly forgot all his carefully selected words. His confidence evaporated. His tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth. He felt like he was going to die.

"Sho?" Sai Lin pressed a hand on his cheek. "You've gone pale. What's wrong?"

"I…er," he dry-swallowed and shoved his hands in his pockets. "You…um…can…"

"Out with it, Sho!" Sai Lin's voice was a mixture of frustration and panic.-

He ripped his hands out of his pockets and held something up. "For you."

Sai Lin squinted. "What's…? Is that…?"

"It is." Sho was holding the Avatar's old betrothal necklace.

"But why do you have it?" Sai Lin asked. "You were supposed to give that back to him _a year ago_."

"He never wanted it," Sho said. "Said it was all wrong."

Sai Lin screwed up her face. "So you're giving me his old gift. His old, _unwanted_, _wrong_ gift. Wonderful, Sho."

"What?" Sho stammered. "No, that's not the point!"

"Then why give it to me, Sho?"

"Because I love you!" Sho yelled. "I don't care about distance, or our differences!"

He took a deep breath and felt both heavy and light. "I love you, Sai Lin."

Sai Lin went blank. For a long time. And then she frowned.

"Sai Lin?" Sho asked quietly.

She dropped her helmet, stepped up to him and took the necklace. Then she turned and tossed it into the lake.

Sho's jaw dropped. "Whaaaaaaa….?"

"You didn't need the necklace, Sho" she said.

And then Sai Lin kissed him.

And then Sho fainted.

* * *

Ba Sing Se settled into its evening life, a quiet contented hubbub of activity. The streets were calm and relaxed; a marked difference from the city that it was not so long ago. Khan walked its pathways and hardly recognised it. That wasn't such a bad thing, he realised.

In the dusky light he stepped into a store and paused to take the scene in. the first thing to hit him was the smell; the aroma of tea sweetened the air. It felt hotter in here, too, steamed and sweaty. Conversational chatter was spotted across the room, engaged by a number of people filling the tables. They smiled and talked and played games and, above all, sipped tea.

"Can I help you, sir?" A bubbly girl asked him. Her hair was in pig-tails and she had a quick and easy smile. "Welcome to the Jasmine Dragon. I'm Jin."

"Just point me to the proprietor," Khan said.

"Sure," she said and led him through the tables.

Khan spotted him before Jin reached him. He sat at a Pai Sho table by himself and played both sides.

"Iroh," Jin said, "gentleman to see you."

Iroh raised his head and glanced at Khan. "Thank you, Jin."

The girl nodded and left to serve others. Khan sat at other end of the table, never taking his eyes off Iroh. Iroh did the same.

"I wondered which one would come for me first," Iroh said. "Tea, Khan?"

"No, thank you," Khan replied. "I can't be the first, can I?"

Iroh nodded. "No one else brave enough, I suppose. Or foolish."

Khan gave a savage grin. "I never could tell a bad idea from a good one. How are you, Iroh?"

"Retired."

"What a coincidence," Khan said. "So am I."

"And now you want to settle old debts before your death?" Iroh grimaced. "Please, Khan, at least let's do this outside. I spent years getting the tea shop just right."

Khan laughed broadly. "Is that all you care about? _Tea_?"

"Well 'good health' seems in doubt right now," Iroh smiled. "Are you really going to kill me, Khan?"

Khan grinned and let the moment linger. "No," he admitted. "I'm not going to kill you. Not that you don't deserve it."

"The tea's on me," Iroh smiled back. "Mercy from you, Khan, demands a celebration!"

"I'm not staying," Khan said and stood. "I just wanted to see you, is all. Wanted to see what became of you."

"And what do you see, Khan?"

Khan looked at him and grunted. "I see me."

"Just another old man who doesn't fit in this new world anymore," Iroh said knowingly. "Am I right?"

Khan rolled his eyes. "You and your pithy wisdom."

He turned to go but Iroh called to him. "Khan, wait! If you won't drink with me then how about a game? Eh? For old time's sake?"

Khan quirked an eyebrow. "One game."

Iroh grinned and began to reset the board. "Of course, of course. One game, he says."

"And if you have something stronger than tea I'll drink it."

"And why not? Jin! Bring out the sake!"

"Just be prepared to lose."

"That's what you told me the first time."

"You cheated then."

"I do not cheat!"

"Want a bet, General?"

"Double or nothing, General!"

They bantered like that for a while, back and forth; an easy rivalry. The sake flowed and one game followed another. And all around them, in the bustling Jasmine Dragon, in the streets of Ba Sing Se, in the Independent Colonies, in places old and new, the world moved on.


End file.
